


No Gilded Cage to Hold Ye

by Volleys-chan (Abstract_Apotheosis)



Category: One Piece
Genre: Action/Adventure, But will always warn in any chapter if there is something bad that you may wanna skip, Character Study, Eventual Romance, F/F, F/M, Family, Friendship, Gen, Humor, Language, May Add More Warnings Later, Mental Health Issues, Nakama, Platonic Cuddling, Platonic Relationships, Slice of Life, Slow Burn, Very in-depth OC crew, Violence, ish
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-13
Updated: 2019-07-19
Packaged: 2020-03-02 13:33:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 71,707
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18811921
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Abstract_Apotheosis/pseuds/Volleys-chan
Summary: To most, gaining a strong crew was the key to success to become Pirate King. To Law, finding every pitiful creature, lost cause, and weak soul and bringing them into his protection was a knee jerk reaction. A homage to his dearly, departed benefactor. While making his way from North Blue through the Grand Line, he's sure to pick up interesting individuals, both weak and strong alike, as he gains notoriety as the dreaded Surgeon of Death. The weak cannot pick the way they die, but with Trafalgar Law as their captain, the Hearts have more than a fighting chance.





	1. One's Not So Average Day

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own One piece, but I do own my ideas and my OCs

It wasn't everyday that a man came to their humble little port town in a yellow submarine. In fact, Boss, the name all the guys had dubbed him since he was, in fact, the boss, was pretty sure that this was the first time that he had ever been asked to do  _repairs_  on a submarine. Marine ships were constant customers with all the Sea Kings that prowled about the calm belt that was near this humble little island, but a submarine filled with rookie pirates heading to the Grand Line...

Well it definitely was a lot of firsts for good ol' Boss, but that didn't mean he was about to turn down a customer. The Marines knew and understood that sometimes customers would not always have the cleanest... pasts, but in a small port town like this: Beli was beli. And if they refused to help pirates, the pirates might retaliate and the Marine base was on the other side of the island.

Too far to call for fast help.

So here Boss was, looking up at the young, tall captain of the unusual vessel and hoping that the word 'death' that was tattooed across his tan fingers didn't mean anything ill for him.

"We have blueprints as well as our own mechanics that could assist you in the repairs, but I'm afraid that this job is a bit too big for my men at this time." The lanky man explained to him with a loose, almost lazy smile on his face.

Boss knew this man might look pretty low-key, but his aura just screamed deadly.

"Yeah..." Boss nodded, pondering what to do about the dilemma of repairing the sub. "Look, I'll be honest, my men and I don't 'ave the proper trainin' ta fix it. Yer men would definitely need ta be 'ere while we try'n patchin' up yer vessel. Most of us know 'ow ta fix ships 'cause it's been our strongest and only trade fer generations. I only has one laddie that pro'ly be capable of even readin' yer blueprints. If he has a gander at 'em, he might be able ta tell us what ta do, if yer mechanics can't. If yer alright with those conditions, I'll call the lad over 'ere and we can start."

"I suppose that will have to work, ja." The man nodded, glancing over his shoulder to speak to the oddly dressed  _polar bear_  standing right behind him. "Bepo, go get Penguin and Shachi and tell them to bring our submarine's blueprints as well. His worker and the two of them agree upon what steps should be taken, we will be employing them to help fix our sub."

Boss nearly had a heart attack then and there when the standing bear gave a nod before saying "Yes Captain" before heading back to the yellow submarine.

Add another first to that growing list of firsts. A walking, talking polar bear wearing an orange jumpsuit and boots.

His wife was never going to believe him when he tells her of his day.

Clearing his throat, Boss turned to shout out to the shipyard full of men in his heavy accent, calling for the very lad he had made mention to the pirate captain. "OZ! Git' yer fat ass over 'ere!"

There were suddenly lots of noise as his other men goaded the lad, teasing him about how he was now in trouble if Boss was calling. Boss ignored their jibs to the lad, more worried about how angry the boy would be at him for putting him in the spotlight. The kid had a policy about keeping his head down and not being the center of attention. He was simply one of those people who preferred not to be seen and liked it that way. Calling him out was sure to get him on the kid's shit list, but Oz was too cowardly to really do anything to Boss other than give him unhappy looks and refuse an extra task or two.

As the boy came forth, hesitant and slightly frightened by the tall, deadly pirate captain, said pirate captain looked back over to Boss with a raised brow, questioning the young lad before him. Now, Boss knew that Oz didn't look very significant or above average, which suited the boy just fine, in fact. Oz looked barely sixteen, which Boss was sure he wasn't much older than seventeen at most,  _slightly_  on the heavy side, about five foot six, a nice tan from all the time he spent outside working, and under his black leather newsboy cap that he wore backwards was an always clean shaven head. The only thing about this lad that was notable was his sharp canary yellow eyes that seemed to see and comprehend nearly everything before them.

"This 'ere is Oz." Boss introduced the lad, pulling Oz in front of him with his hands on his shoulders with the boy being pulled along reluctantly. "He might not look mighty special, but the lad's got a knack fer fixin' anythin' he can get his grubby 'ands onta. Why, he once got a'old of me pocket watch, the thing's been broke fer years at that point, and when I wasn't lookin' one day, the little bugger snatched it and 'ou'ta curiosity' fixed the confounded contraption!"

Oz looked away, blushing in mortification at Boss's praise. The young captain nodded, however, he still looked unsure of whether or not the young lad was as capable as Boss said he was.

"Don't judge the boy 'till after he looks at yer blueprints."

The man nodded, his grey eyes giving Oz a piercing gaze from under his spotted fur cap, watching as the boy flinched under his scrutiny. Boss felt sorry for the lad and that he had put him there, but business was business and he was not about to refuse business to a man as dangerous as this one seemed to be.

"Are you truly capable of reading something as complex as blueprints or are you barely able to read at all?" He questioned in that relaxed tone, yet with no doubt mocking Boss and the other island local's language skills and inability to read more than a few words.

Oz narrowed his yellow eyes as he clenched his jaw, Boss nearly groaned when it was apparent that Oz's ill temper was surfacing. It was the only thing that made his usual timid employee become brazen and outspoken.

"I can read, I can write, I can formulate and properly articulate sentences, and I can, with no doubt, comprehend the schematics to your submarine far better than  _you_  ever could hope to." Oz snarled, his voice was low and harsh.

"Oh?" The captain said with a sneering smirk. "So, Oz- _ya_  thinks he can fix my submarine, does he?"

"Not by myself, I'm not daft enough to even think I could manage a project of that size alone, but yes, I think I could figure out what isn't working in your vessel and manage to get it repaired!" Oz countered, his temper obviously still blinding him to the dangers of speaking so brazenly to a man like this one. Especially since this man dare tack on such an unusual suffix to his name. Normally it wasn't a suffix used to be added on to people's names but to professions and places.

Instead of the man losing temper, like Boss thought he would, his sneering smirk turned to one of amusement, like he had gotten what he had wanted from the boy.

"Very well then, Oz-ya," the menacing man said with a twisted grin and malicious look in his eyes. "You, with the assistance of my head mechanics, will figure out what is malfunctioning and perhaps damaged upon my vessel and use your resources to fix it within the week. Any longer and I'll kill you slowly for your insolence. How does that sound?"

Finally, Boss could see his timid, pussy-footed employee coming back up to surface, suddenly very aware of the predicament he had put himself into, but the lad did well to hide it. He merely swallowed hard, eyes never softening or wavering as he gave one definite and determined nod before turning around and walking back into the shipyard towards the decent sized portable Boss used as his office.

"And where are you going, Oz-ya?" The pirate captain asked in a dark tone, making Boss wonder if he was trying to be intimidating or he naturally spoke in such a cryptically dark manner.

"I have to get something to write and take notes upon if I am ever to fix your submarine and I know for a fact that they will not appear out of thin air. So I should get my supplies, should I not?" Oz called over his shoulder in a snarky manner Boss hardly ever heard the lad take when actually addressing people.

Boss almost rolled his eyes in disbelief. This lad was going to be the death of them all if he didn't learn to shut his trap! And what was worse was that he, Boss, was to blame for the young mechanic meeting the pirate captain. He could see the man frowning heavily at Oz's sarcastic wit, not at all please at the tone given to him.

"Please, you'll 'ave ta forgive the laddie. Oz has no kin ta speak of and he's been on his own since before comin' 'ere. He's a good, hard'n smart worker, but not much else. The only other thing besides me and a few others t'at likes the lad is his damnable cat." Boss explained, hoping that if the man understood the poor lad a little better he'd not kill everyone, including Oz, for the lad's rude behavior.

The man stared at Boss for a good long while, making Boss, who was a big, strong man while the pirate captain was a tall, lanky man, want to quiver in his boots. Finally, he turned his gaze away from Boss and began to slowly stride back to his sub, probably to find his talking bear who never came back with either the blueprints or the head mechanics.

However, before he was out of hearing range, he called back to Boss. "I don't take orders. Remember that next time you think to tell me about."

"Yes'sir!" Boss slurred the two words together in his hasty response. Suddenly he thought of one last thing that he should address before finding Oz, who was no doubt hyperventilating in the corner of his office by now, and helping him calm down. "W'at's yer name, sir?"

The man paused, turned his head to give him a frightfully wicked smirk, before turning his head forward again and walking once more to his sub. He gave his answer as he left. "Trafalgar Law."

Though Boss hadn't heard of this pirate before, it was obvious that it was because they were relatively new and had yet made a name for themselves. But one thing was for sure, with a man like that leading the band of pirates... it was only a matter of time. And Boss had a feeling that he had unknowingly thrown poor Oz into the middle of it all.

* * *

"Sooooo, let's see if we can get this straight..." Penguin stared incredulously at his captain.

Shachi picked up where the other man had trailed off, giving Law the same look of disbelief. "You want us to work alongside these stupid island locals who have shown little to no reading capabilities even within their own environment  _at all-_ "

"And, by  _reading_  the blueprints to a complex piece of machinery, figure out how to repair a submarine?" Penguin finished up for the two of them.

He had stopped them as they had finally been leaving the submarine after spending the last half an hour relocating the submarine's schematics that had been buried in Law's overloaded office. Bepo, the poor navigating Mink wherever he might be now, had been lost in the mess. Both he and Shachi vowed to go back one day and rescue him from his dreadful fate of being buried alive. That or tell Law that Bepo had gotten buried under an avalanche of yet filed papers in his office when pulling out the blueprints from the bottom the stack and the two of them had been too lazy to get him out.

"Now, now," Law teasingly chastised them with a cheshire grin. He was too proud of himself for some reason. "I didn't say the whole village was going to assisting you, did I? Merely one of them is going to be looking at the blueprints alongside the two of you and he  _assured_  me he could do more than read a handful of words."

"What? Can he read two handfuls?" Penguin shot back snarkily.

"Cause that still isn't really helpful if he's just not as stupid as the rest but still stupider than he should be." Shachi informed their captain.

"If he proves to be unintelligent and more of a hinderance than an asset, I've already promised the boy I'd kill him." Law waved the two's concern off like nothing.

"If you say so Captain." The two of them chimed together as they shrugged simultaneously as well.

Really, who were they to question Law's authority or reasoning? Though they were definitely more than his unimportant minions (they were practically his older brothers, damnit, but Law always ignored them when they laid their claims), Shachi and Penguin knew there was only one person on the whole submarine that could get away with questioning Law's authority or rational continuously and  _neither_  of them were that person. Maybe Bepo could get away with it too, but someone would have to find the polar bear in all that paper first to test that theory.

"Ja, I do say so." Law told with lazy smirk before it slowly disappeared as he noticed something missing. "Where is Bepo? He was suppose to come back with you two."

"Uhhhhh..." the two of them started at the same time, glance at each other to try to figure out what they should  _tell_  their captain.

"He's trapped under a bunch of papers and books in your office, Captain." Shachi finally stated.

"We tried to get him out, but he told us you were expecting us shortly..." Penguin continued on the explanation.

"So we left him there." Shachi bluntly finished.

"Again?" Law grumbled as he crossed his arms and looked extremely vexed.

Both Shachi and Penguin  _knew_  that Law was a peculiar man, seeing as they had known him for nearly ten years now. He was an absolute neat freak when it came to his infirmary, but his room and captain's office were severely neglected. Law could honestly care  _less_  about his room, seeing as he hardly used it for more than storing his personal belongings and 'sleeping', but his office was a mess merely because he had yet found the time to sort and organize the area- seeing as he was use to someone entirely different managing his paperwork. So things ended up being stacked up into precariously tall towers of books and papers that often tumbled onto unsuspecting (or suspecting) people (or polar bears) when they  _had_  to go into the office to either talk to Law or (more often than not) retrieve something. Even Law had fallen victim several times before and had to wait for someone to notice him missing at meal time before anyone started to search for him.

"Yeah." Both of them responded with heavy sighs. " _Again._ "

Law looked exasperated as he dropped his arms to his sides and let out a long sigh. "Go. The person you're to meet is in the solitary portable building with his boss. His name is Oz."

"Alright Captain, but... aren't you coming too?" Shachi asked right before Law began to head to the entrance of the submarine.

"No, I have a polar bear to find in my office before Leon finds out." Law grumbled.

Both men nodded. They knew that if there was one person Law wouldn't want finding out about what happened  _yet again_  in his office was Leon. The man had been nagging Law about the state his office was in and poor Bepo's incident would only add fuel to the fire, though Leon always made a very good point about it being a serious safety hazard. However, they were not about to point out that Leon was right- they were not stupid despite any inane behavior they may partake in on occasion. Instead, both kept their mouths shut and began to head to the heart of the shipyard to where the boss's portable office resigned, leaving Law to find his navigator by himself.

"I hope he doesn't get buried as well." Shachi commented to Penguin when they were out of their captain's hearing range.

"I hope Leon isn't the one who ends up digging the two of them out if he does." Penguin added.

Both let out a shiver at the idea of that man being in a pissy mood. The two of them could only hope Law would be successful in his rescue mission.

As for them, they had to go meet up with the idiot who pretty much forfeited his life if he failed to bring forth the promised results. He was in the office, like Law said he would be, with his boss who was rattling on about something to the person they assumed was their guy since he was clearing off the single desk in the office to make room for the blueprints they had. They both silently gapped at how young the kid seemed to be and were instantly questioning if maybe the older man with the thick accent was actually Oz instead of being the boss of the establishment.

"Are you the two men that Mister Trafalgar sent to collaborate with me on repairing the submarine?" The lad asked, instantly answering any unspoken questions about who Oz was in that one question.

"Uhhh... Yeah." Penguin couldn't stop staring at the kid. He didn't look like much. He was kinda sorta chubby, his coveralls were a standard jean blue with loads of stains upon it from all the jobs the boy seemed to do. In fact, the only unique trait this kid had was that he had sharp, canary yellow eyes.

Luckily for Penguin, Shachi was quick to recover and ensure the two of them didn't look as stupid as the dumbstruck man was making them out to be.

"I'm Shachi and this is Penguin. Captain said that you're the guy to talk to about repairing our submarine. Oz, right?"

"That's right," Oz nodded, looking over at his boss who gave him a firm nod before leaving the room as he mumbled something about getting back to his own job. "I'm Oz. I was just making room for you to stretch out the blueprints. I need to study the submarine's schematics for a while in order to understand how the vessel as a whole operates so that I may understand what might be malfunctioning."

Oz had looked away from the two of them as he continued to move things around on the desk to make room. He spoke to them in a low but clear manner, making the two realize that the boy was indeed a soft-spoken individual. He seemed slightly relieved by the fact that it was just the two of them and that their captain was no where in sight. He was still slightly nervous looking, but both Heart pirates weren't really focusing on that at the moment. Too shocked to do anything but listen to the kid talk.

"I was hoping to get your perspective on the whole matter as well," Oz continued, unaware of their stunned looks. "Since you two have probably been managing your vessel for a while. I might not understand a few things- jargon and some short-hand probably- on the blueprints and would require your knowledge. Your captain didn't say what was wrong with the submarine, merely that it was in disarray and that he wished it to be fixed. Between the three of us, I suppose we could figure out what is not working accordingly and put it right. Hopefully within the week as well, since that was the time restraint given to me. Is that an acceptable arrangement for you, Mister Shachi? Mister Penguin?"

"If it is figuring out what isn't working right, shouldn't we actually be systematically checking out the different engine segments on the sub instead of looking at the blueprints?" Shachi asked, interested in why they would start with the blueprints instead of running the equipment and seeing what section wasn't working properly.

"Normally yes," Oz agreed, looking up and setting his eyes on the rolled up schematics in Penguin's arms. "But the problem lies not only in the fact that the machine isn't working as it should, but that I am not familiar with the machine. By studying the designs, I should be able to familiarize myself with it well enough to be on par with your understanding of the submarine that you acquired through time spent working on it."

"Makes sense." Penguin agreed, finally moving further into the office. "So, this is more for your benefit than ours, right?"

Oz nodded as he held out his hand and took some of the rolled blueprints from Penguin as the man began to upload his burden onto the desk. "In a way, it is in all our interest if I learn more about your vessel. But to save time, could you tell me what made your crew stop here for repairs and your theories on why it is malfunctioning?"

"Yeah," Shachi strode over to the desk as he spoke, sitting on the corner of the furniture as he watched the teen unroll the first of several blueprints and study their complex designs. "We actually had to  _sail_  here instead of using the engines. It was working just fine until we had an interesting encounter with a Sea King that gave our submarine a good few hits. There is no damage to the exterior of the vessel, but the engines up and quit shortly afterwards. I think we might have either dislodged a few pieces or some of the parts were damaged. Problem is, we can't seem to locate where the problem is as a whole because the engine won't turn on at all."

"But our power is still on." Penguin added. "We have a generator on the ship that we use as both a power supply to the basic utilities upon the ship and also the ignition to start the engine. That's still working and nothing came loose, so we already ruled that out."

"Plus the engine is almost always on unless we purposely decide to be dead in the water or are in port."

"So, is it working at all? Like it sounds like its trying to start or is it just not responding at all?" Oz asked, jotting down notes as he continued to look at the designs in front of him.

"It'll make the right noise, but something must be jammed or damaged because it won't fire up for longer that ten seconds before making a huge booming sound and shutting itself off through its failsafe." Penguin informed Oz.

Oz nodded his head, still studying the large blue papers before him, opening up new ones, and jotting notes. He was silent for a moment before asking another question, which Shachi or Penguin would proceed to answer. Oz would jot down more notes in response to their answers while his eyes never wavered from the blueprints before him. Both Heart pirates present could sense the lad's nervousness vanish the longer he was with the two of them and totally entranced by his studying.

Both Penguin and Shachi were really impressed by the boy's professionalism as he continued to ask relevant questions about their own attempts at finding the source. Not only that, but the kid was soaking up the information from the schematics like a sponge with water. He was smart and capable, moreso than their captain initially realized when employing the lad originally. By the time they called it a day, Oz was finished with his first analysis and informed both men that he was more than ready to have a gander at the actual malfunctioning engine.

The two Heart pirates had never seen someone catch on so quickly. They had spent several years studying advance machinery as aspiring engineers back at the university they had gone to since Law and Leon had decided to go there to broaden their own understanding of their own personal interests. Of course, none of them had the financial means to go to such an expensive institution without working their asses off (except Bepo who had opted to study at the local library endlessly to refine his navigational skills without breaking their nonexistent bank by enrolling as well). Law had worked at local clinics under some pretty competent doctors, Leon had taken to working at restaurants as a chef, and both Penguin and Shachi had resorted to taking as many shifts as mechanics in a local shipyard as they could when they weren't in school or doing their homework. Most of the ships they had built engines for where Marine warships, but it was also the first place they had seen such a commodity as a submarine and it had been their suggestion to Law to obtain one as his vessel after he had recruited them into his crew. So both of them were well versed in drawing, reading, and utilizing blueprints, but it was apparent that Oz didn't have all their experience under his belt, with him being so young, and yet he seemed to grasp the concept quickly and was confident he could now do what Shachi and Penguin had spent years learning.

Though both felt a twinge of jealousy, neither could deny the strong desire to have this kid on their ship as their underling. There were currently only four extremely overworked mechanics trying to care for such a huge piece of machinery on top of several other mechanical devices that needed their attention as well. If they could obtain someone like this kid, they would no doubt lighten their burden and have things running a lot smoother on the submarine.

"Since your submarine is to be repaired, I imagine all of you will be staying at the local inn, am I correct?" Oz said as he gathered up the blueprints and began to roll them back up.

It was about five o'clock and it was quitting time at the shipyard for the men that had the day time shift. The graveyard shift was mainly the watch guards to make sure no one without the right clearance got into the area.

"Yeah. The Bella Inn." Penguin nodded, remembering where their crew mate, Elias, had mentioned as the place he had booked them to stay.

"Alright. Since I am going to be accompanying you to look at your engines tomorrow, I should probably meet you there. What time would you like me to show up?" Oz asked, standing as he did so and tucking the rolls of blueprints underarm.

He was going to take them home so he could look at them a little longer before returning them back into their rightful owners' hands, Penguin and Shachi had already agreed to the idea since they didn't really need them for the moment.

"When can we get back into the shipyard?"

"The earliest is five, but most of the people on that particular shift are there to open up. Seven is when most of the other employees come to actually start working." Oz told them.

"Eight then. That way we're not in the way and we've gotten our breakfast and coffee." Shachi nodded.

"Alright. I'll see you then." Oz nodded before escorting the two Hearts out of Boss's office before locking up. "I will be sure to keep these blueprints safe until I can return them to you in the morning. Thank you again for the opportunity to study these a little longer."

"No problem." Shachi waved off the gratitude of the young boy.

"It's the least we can do since, with your help, we might actually get our engine working again." Penguin added.

"I'll see what I can do." Oz muttered, wincing as he remembered his current predicament.

Shachi and Penguin walked with the bald lad for a bit in silence, until they found themselves merging with the crowd of men shuffling out of the shipyard now that their shift was over. They realized that the lad was talented at melting into a crowd in a matter of seconds by how easily weaved his way through the mass of men. Realizing that their best option was to follow his lead, they quickly went after him before they could accidentally lose sight of him entirely. The two almost lost the boy once or twice with him being as quick as he was, but they managed to make it through the crowd without too much struggle.

Once out of the shipyard and into the small town, Shachi and Penguin headed over to where Bella Inn was; Oz having never once stopped his pace as he headed in the opposite direction. Though it may have seemed rude of the lad to not bid them goodbye, both knew how eager he had been at studying the submarine's schematics on a more detailed level. Making haste for their newest destination, both pirates attempted to ignore the level of hostility sent their way by the locals. They might have been referring to themselves as pirates for years now, but they were relatively new to being pirates openly and were unaccustomed to the looks that went with the status. Doing their best to ignore it, they kept their guard up as they kept walking. The two mechanics felt a level of stress lift from their shoulders as they finally walked through the threshold of the humble looking inn.

Elias definitely hadn't picked out the nicest looking inn, no surprise there, but the inn's environment lacked the hostile vibes they had received their whole way from the shipyard to the inn. The entrance of the inn was a simple, large wooden tavern with a kitchen on the opposite side of the bar. There was a large brick fireplace with couches around it, a few wooden furnishings, including tables and chairs and stools, and a counter where the innkeeper normally greeted their guests. A staircase was at the far side of the room, where the rooms were, no doubt.

Sometimes there would be music in main areas of inns that they would stop at, but the simplistic nature of the island meant that they probably didn't have any sort of phonograph or turntable to play some music. Instead the cracking and popping of the wood in the lit fireplace filled the place with white noise as well as the sizzling of food coming from the kitchen while the tame conversations filled up the rest of the space.

With a quick scan of the room, it was obvious that the Heart pirates were the only inhabitants of the inn at the moment. Elias was sitting at the tables playing poker rather bored like with the other two mechanics on the crew as well as their captain's medical assistant. From the looks of the other three's faces, Elias was winning and from the looks on Elias's face, he wished that they were playing with real beli, not cookies and unwanted snacks.

Leon, the sub's appointed chef, was keeping himself busy by cooking, which was rather ironic since they were staying at a inn, where their meals  _should_  have been supplied by the innkeepers, but Leon was a control freak when it came to their diets. His young assistant was trying his best to fulfill his given tasks of cutting, peeling, and washing while hoping that Leon would eventually let him help do more than prep the food for the actual cooking. Both Shachi and Penguin had known Leon long enough to know that would probably  _never_  happen.

But his food was always good. It was always thought out to the specifics of each individual eating and, sometimes when the man was being that much  _extra_ , individually prepared. Tonight it was a group dinner. One meal that fulfilled the requirements of all the men present. It was definitely grilled fish, one of Captain's favorites, with some sort of complementary sides to boost the flavoring and health benefits of the group.

Locking in on their captain, the two of them made their way over to the fireplace where both Law and Bepo were lounging. More like, where Bepo was taking a nap and the captain using his navigator as a oversized pillow as he busied himself with a thick, hard covered book.

Noticing their return, he looked up from his reading before glancing back down to take note of the page number before shutting the textbook entirely. If there was one thing that everyone in the crew knew about their captain, it was that he  _hated_  it when people hurt his books, not even dog-earring the page was tolerated. At all.

"So, how did your meeting with Oz-ya turn out? Is this worth our time or should I just kill him now and save us the trouble?" Law asked with a lazy, dark smile spreading across his lips.

"The entire meeting was mostly spent getting Oz familiar with the submarine's blueprints." Penguin reported to him. "He has never worked on such a machine before and wished to first familiarize himself with how it is  _suppose_  to operate before actually taking a look at the malfunctioning engine."

"By the end of our session, he was confident that he could start working with us on repairing the engine and seems to have a few theories in his head as to  _why_  the engine won't run." Shachi quickly added on before their captain could get a word in. "I'll have to be honest Captain. When I first saw the kid, I didn't think there was a chance in  _hell_  he could help us, but now... I'm thinking he might actually help us fixed our engine, in  _less_  than a week."

Law let out a sly smirk. "So it seems that Oz-ya will be of use, ja?"

"Yeah. Definitely a lot more than if we were to get help from any other person here."

"Or even elsewhere." Penguin continued on where Shachi finished. "Submarines aren't common and its engine isn't just something someone can fiddle with without understanding the basics of how it is suppose to function. Most common shipyard men wouldn't be able to read the blueprints too well either. I don't know how many other people out there would even know the workings of a submarine  _because_  they are such a rare commodity!"

"Oi! What are we? Chopped liver over here?" One of the two other mechanics called over to them, having been eavesdropping unabashedly on their superiors' report about the young lad.

"We aren't chopped liver, Odd. While Shachi and Penguin were busy trailin' after Captian and searching for the perfect seaworthy vessel, we were busy building our lovely  _Persephone_." The other mechanic reminded his counterpart continued to play cards.

"We're lucky you both decided to join the crew, Ignaas, Oddmund." Penguin pointed out. "Even though you two aren't  _educated_  in engineering on the same level as Shachi and I, you two spent enough time on the team  _building_  her that you understand how she functions through sheer experience."

" _Che_ ," Elias let out a disdainful noise as he showed his royal flush to the other men playing poker with him. "You speak about the submarine as if it was actually a woman. Just because one of you decided to name it  _Persephone_  after we...  _repurposed it_  doesn't mean it is a lady."

"You obviously are not a man of the sea, Elias." Leon tsked as he continued to cook, cutting in before any of the actual mechanics could form an angry response. "Then again, I don't think that you'd  _be_  on our crew if it hadn't been for that ill  _gambling_  habit of yours. How large is that underworld bounty for your head again, hmm?"

"Large enough that I joined a band of rookie pirates, sail the oceans in a submarine, go weeks at times without a woman or two in my bed, and perform manual labor as well as handle your finances for next to nothing." Elias listed rather waspishly while dealing out the cards for the next round of poker and preemptively placing his bets.

"You do realize that we all get equal pay, right?" Orpheus, the medical assistant, pointed out as he began to ready his hand. "Fold."

"You always fold." Ignaas grumbled as he put two cards down and received two more. "Call. As for mister hoity-toity over here," Ignaas raised his pinky in a mocking manner. "That's barely enough to buy his  _precious_  caviar."

"It  _isn't_  enough to buy a single can of quality caviar, you plebeian."

"Call. We might be 'commoners' but that doesn't mean we're too stupid to know when a plutocrat like you is trying to insult us. You're born of noble blood and from a well off family. So what? In the end, you're stuck on the same submarine as us 'lower-class' because of your mistakes." Oddmund shot back.

Elias gave Oddmund a long, unamused gaze before laying his cards face up on the table. "Full house."

"Damn it!" Oddmund shouted, throwing his cards on the table in frustration. "I thought I had you this time!"

"And you wonder why I always fold." Orpheus muttered under his breath as he tossed his cards face down on the table.

"Is it sad that he hardly seems fazed by our comments, Odd?" Ignaas sighed as he too threw his less than desired hand on the table too.

"I've already accepted that I'm stuck with you lot. I chose this route a long time ago. Plus, insulting me was an obvious attempt at trying to cover up your meager bluff. You two are extremely predictable at times." Elias said irritably as he gathered up his 'winnings'. "And by the way, I have never really enjoyed splurging my wealth upon caviar. I think it is more practical to eat salt than buy expensive fish eggs that taste nearly the same."

"Not that Elias's spending habits are not interesting, but I'd like to get back to the subject at hand. How long do you think it will take to fix the engine?" Law brought all their attentions back to Penguin and Shachi, who had been side-tracked by the tangent their original conversation seemed to have led to.

"Maybe a week. Possibly less." Penguin summarized at last. "We'll know for certain tomorrow after doing our initial tests with Oz."

Law nodded, opening up his book once more and searching for his spot. "Then I will let young Oz-ya live a little longer. Thank you Shachi, Penguin. You are officially off duty for now."

"Yes Captain." Both playfully saluted their designated leader before grabbing themselves chairs and joining the other mechanics at losing poker.

"Seriously Law, you actually threatened to kill the boy if he fails to come through?" Leon asked in an exasperated tone.

He was the only one besides Bepo, who only did so on rare occasions, that actually called their captain by his first name. Penguin and Shachi slipped from time to time when they felt they needed to reaffirm their close relationship with him, but Leon never used the term if Law wasn't demanding he did. Even Elias called him Captain Law rather than Law. But then again, Leon had known Law long before the others, long before Law had openly declared his goals and desire to be a pirate captain, and was quite use to the strange doctor captain.

"And if I did?" Law sounded a little too pleased with himself as he continued to read.

"Oh, nothing, just that it probably isn't the best idea to threaten the locals if we are forced to stay here for a week." Leon lectured, still focusing on cooking his nakama's dinner. "The locals have already displayed their general dislike for outsiders. Let's not force them to elevate their hateful glares and rude comments into actual acts of violence before the week is done." Leon's focus quickly snapped over to his assistance before Law could even give him his retort. "And Basil, you need to cut those onions a little thinner and faster next time. They're too thick and it took you entirely too long to even cut them."

"Yes sir." Basil sighed as he worked harder at making the next onion more to his teacher's standard.

"Relax Leon." Law rolled his eyes before continuing to look at his textbook. "I'm not going to kill the boy unless he wastes my time. I've given him a deadline and Oz-ya assured me that he could accomplish it by that timeframe. I merely gave a little extra...  _motive_  to complete it on time."

"Is this the same extra motive that you gave to your lab partner back at the university? Because, if my memory serves me right, she ran out the room, in tears, screaming that you were going to murder her."

"It wasn't all that bad." Law waved off casually, turning a page in his book as he continued to focus on it instead of Leon.

"She transferred to a different school in a single day and from what the rumors said, changed her name, her looks, and her major. She was a entire semester away from graduating, Law."

"Is that so?" Law drawled as he let a sly smirk slip across his features. "I always wondered what the general student population assumed happened to her. I know the staff thought she merely dropped out because of her declining grades."

"Tell me you didn't." Leon narrowed his eyes at his captain's implications.

"Hmm, hard to say. I didn't kill her, if that's what you mean. However, I am positive she didn't drop out or transfer schools."

Leon chose to drop the subject there and go back to cooking dinner. When it came to Law and his...  _eccentric_  nature, sometimes it was best to leave things where they were, like whether or not his lab partner was actually alive. No one else in the room bothered to comment, instead opting to focus at their current tasks. The room was filled with an oddly comfortable silence, despite Law's last comment, and a relaxed mood while the only noise came from the card game, where every single time Elias won, the other men groaned and hissed words of displeasure at the lucky yet unfortunate noble turned pirate.

After some time of losing at poker, Shachi and Penguin were seconds away from asking the whereabouts of their host, or hosts, when a young woman appeared from a hallway directly under the stairwell. She had a beauty about her, fair skin, pitch black hair, and deep midnight blue eyes that sparkled. The two mechanics quickly forgot their words as the stared longingly at the dark haired beauty. She never once looked at the two as she came further into the room, nodding her head first at their captain before looking over at Leon.

"That smells wonderful! Far better than anything my sister and I could make." She said with a soft smile and slightly noticeable foreign accent. "Are you positive that is not too much trouble for you? It  _is_  the responsibility of the innkeepers to prepare the meal for the guests, not the other way around."

It was obvious to both Penguin and Shachi, who had not met the woman prior to this, that she was not a local either. She spoke too well for someone who was actually raised on this near backwater town, just like Oz. It made them wonder if that was why this little inn lacked that air of hostility.

"It is no problem at all, Miss Bella," Leon waved her concerns off with a gentlemanly smile. "Cooking is more than just a job to me. I love to cook!"

"Oh please, call me Notte. No one ever addresses my sister or me as Miss Bella."

"Miss Notte, then." Leon nodded his head.

"I suppose that's as good as I will get out of you, isn't it? You, your captain, and Mister Elias are entirely too polite." Notte laughed.

"Calling me Mister Elias doesn't help your argument, Miss Notte." Elias pointed out as he once more shuffled the cards for yet another round of poker. She flushed at his words, trying not to look at the man that sparked so much intrigue within her.

"No, I suppose not." Notte agreed before walking to the window and taking a look outside at the darkening skies. "Are all your men in for the night, Mister Law?"

"Yes they are, Miss Notte." Law affirmed, never looking up from his book.

"That's good. It seems like we're going to have a downpour tonight. Auntie Pluie said that she could feel it in her bones. Might even get some thunder, the way her joints have been aching." Notte mentioned as she peeked through the window at the sky.

"Joint pain predicting the weather? Isn't that just some old wive's tale?" Orpheus asked as he folded his hand once more.

"There are actually several theories about how the change of air pressure within the climate may affects the joints of some individuals. Usually, these people suffer from arthritis or other joint pain and it is theorized that because the nerves are already hypersensitive, the change of air pressure is noticeable to these individuals. So Mrs. Pluie may actually be able to, an extent, predict the weather." Law informed his assistant, never once quitting his reading as he spoke.

"So it really is going to rain, Captain?" Basil asked, looking up from his cutting to look at his captain.

"Wait and see, Basil."

"My, my, such an educated and proper bunch." Notte clapped gleefully as she turned back around to look at them. "It is such a breath of fresh air listening to you all speak. No broken sentences, no derogatory statements about my disposition of being a woman, and most of all, you probably don't need me to tell you what 'derogatory' and 'disposition' actually mean."

"I'm guessing that people from this island aren't too friendly with outsiders?" Penguin asked.

"Because everyone on the way here were practically giving us the evil eye." Shachi added in. Both purposely left out the lack of elevated learning and ability to read on the off chance that Notte would take offense for some strange reason.

"Yes," Notte sighed heavily as she approached the bar that separated the kitchen from the lounge and sat in a stool facing the men playing poker. "The people of Roanoke Island are not too friendly with anyone born outside their community. The island was previously isolated from the rest of the world until the Marines came and forced them to open their docks and town to travelers. It's been roughly around 150 years since then, but the townsfolk still do not like outsiders. It's a little easier for foreign womenfolk to be accepted within the community as a whole, but that is because we are expected to marry one of their men and bare their children. Women from this island may tend the food stalls or the shops, but they can't actually do anything like work at the docks or anything that would make decent pay. They consider it a man's job and women are not welcomed. Even running an inn is considered a man's job."

"If that's so, how did your family end up running this establishment, Miss Notte?" Elias questioned. "If I recall from earlier this afternoon, there only seems to be women on staff."

"Yes, well, that's because Auntie Pluie was married to one of their men and inherited the inn after he passed. That is the  _only_  reason why we run an inn and it nearly caused a riot among the townsfolk too, especially when Auntie Pluie changed the name of the inn to Bella Inn. I think she did that just to make the whole affair even more scandalous! Give the people something to actually fuss about, she said. She's always been a bit rebellious."

"So a woman can be accepted under the right conditions, but what about in the case of a man? Would he ever be fully accepted within the community or would he forever be an outcast?" Law's question caused the entire group, even Leon for a moment, to look his way, surprised that he was even paying attention to the conversation. His book was closed and he was observing Notte as he lounged comfortable against Bepo.

Notte blinked, taking a moment to understand what he was implying before her eyes lightened as a gentle smile spread across her lips. "Ah. You've met our dear little Oz, haven't you?"

"Ja, he's agreed to fix our method of transportation." Law tactfully chose to leave out the part where he'd kill the lad if he failed.

"He did?!" She brightened at that. "Oh, then you have nothing to worry about! Oz is brilliant when it comes to tinkering! He fixes anything he can get his hands on. He pulls it apart, sees how it all fits together, and makes it better than before! I have this old music box my elder sister gave me years ago. It broke shortly after we arrived here, but Oz was able to make it work again! He also fixed Ol' Boss's pocket-watch that hasn't work since before Boss inherited it! Your 'method of transportation' must be something extraordinary if Oz was assigned the task."

"You speak quite fondly of him." Leon noted aloud as he readied to serve dinner.

"Yes, well, he's been tutoring my sister and me since he showed up." Notte explained, still beaming at the thought of the young lad. "He's a little skittish and shy, but he's absolutely brilliant! Not to mention he's well educated too. We're not sure where he came from, he just showed up one day out of the blue, but my family looks after him the best he will allow us. He tutors us for meals, he catches us fish or small animals when he needs to stay the night, and his cat catches all our pests too!" She frowned slightly at her next thought. "But the boy is so stubborn! He won't stay here for more than a night because he's worried his presence will cause a commotion with the locals, so he rents a room from the local harlot just because no one cares if he stays with her. No one thinks much of her anyways because she associates with the Marines. She's so mean to him too! She kicks him out of his own room if she has some of her marine  _company_." The young woman paused when she realized what she was doing and let out an embarrassed laugh. "Oh, just listen to me gossip! I highly doubt a room full of men are even  _interested_  in the local goings-on!"

"Not true!" Oddmund was the first to deny her statement.

"We love to hear you talk, Miss Notte!" Ignaas followed up.

Notte laughed cheerily with a huge smile on her face. "Ah, how sweet of you~!"

"Though I don't doubt for a second that your captain is using my sister's chatty nature to get some very valuable information about this village and its inhabitants." Another beautiful young woman, perhaps a little older than Notte, came from the same hallway under the staircase. She too had the same accent as the dark haired beauty. And though she had many similar traits, this one was a golden blonde with sky blue eyes and a pleasant tan.

Law didn't even bother refute her statement. She was right.

"Oh, Soleil! Is Auntie Pluie finally asleep?"

Soleil nodded. "She is. It's always difficult for her when the weather gets bad like this. Her joints flare up every time." She quickly glanced out the window and perked at her discovery. "Ah! It's starting to rain and pretty hard at that."

"Auntie Pluie does it again!"

"Indeed." Soleil agreed before looking back over to Law. "And to answer the question my dear sister never ended up giving: No, a man would never be fully accepted within this community. They allow Oz to work at the shipyard so he can support himself and even that is only because of Boss's kind nature." She had crossed over to sit on a stool next to her sister, eyes still trained on Law as she continued. "So, Mr. Law, what do you intend to do with that information?"

"Dinner's ready!" Leon interrupted before Law could even answer, causing all attention of the Heart Pirates to fall onto him at those words. "Go sit at the table over there and I'll serve you all up." He looked over at the two women and gave them a quick smile. "You too, Miss Notte, Miss Soleil."

"Really!" Notte smiled warmly at the invitation while her sister looked slightly hesitant.

"Oh, you do not have to include us. You are the guests after all and-"

"I might have cooked the food, but it  _is_  your food I cooked. Just dock your meal off of our final bill." Leon assured the blonde. "It's not often that I cook for anyone other than this lot, so just humor me, Miss Soleil."

"If you are sure." Soleil nodded, slowly approaching the table that everyone else were beginning to occupy.

"You'd be doing us all a favor by joining us!" Penguin promised her as he pulled out a chair for her to sit.

"We travel for days on end with just a bunch of men to stare at! Both you and Miss Notte keeping us company is a real treat for us!" Oddmund decided to add, pulling out a chair for Notte.

"And having women around reminds most of them to use their manners." Elias received a few glares from the mechanics for his comment.

Notte laughed at that as she sat down, thanking Oddmund for being such a gentleman. While Soleil slowly walked to the table, unsure if it was really polite to accept their invitation. Though it was their food Leon had cooked (and they would bill him for it later), he had made this meal with his nakama in mind, not two lowly innkeepers. Even though she was unsure, she never stopped making her way to the table. Just as she was about to sit down in the chair Penguin had pulled out for her, the front door of the inn opened and in walked Oz, soaked to the bone with a large black furball darting in after him. His jacket was not on him, instead covering a long cylinder container that he often used for protecting his longer documents or papers or designs from the elements. The rain must have been so heavy that he had been worried about his cargo and forgone his own welfare to keep it safe.

"Oh, Oz!" Soleil was the first one to reach him, quickly taking the canister and setting it against the front desk. "You're absolutely soaked and in this weather! Notte! Go get a towel so we can get him dry fast!"

Notte was out of her seat and already on her way to do just so way before Soleil had even asked her. She was quick in her errand and was back in a matter of moments, throwing a towel over Oz.

"S-s-sorry about dr-dropping in on you un-unexpectedly..." Oz said through chattering teeth. "Tabith-tha h-had a-a-a gue-guest out o-o-of th-the blue..."

"And she kicked you out!? At this time of day and in this weather?" Soleil was indignant on Oz's behalf.

"Sh-sh-she didn't w-w-want h-him to s-s-see me..." Oz shrugged as he looked at the hardwood floor beneath him. "Sh-she didn't w-want him t-to s-see T-tei-s-s-sei either."

"That... that... that bitch!" Notte fumed. "She has no right to do that! You need to stick up for yourself every once in a while Oz! Or at least come live here with us!"

Oz shook his head. Before he could even give his rebuttal, however, a hot drink was thrust into his line of view. He jumped back slightly before snapping his head up to look at the man offering him the hot drink.

"Here, it'll warm you up." The man was dark skinned with thick dark hair slicked handsomely under a grey banded white fedora hat. He was decorated in some pretty jewelry, a black braided necklace with white chrysanthemums around his neck, a few random pieces with raw gemstones, his ears had piercings with similar rings of gold like the pirate captain he had met earlier today, and handsome turquoise quartz cufflinks on each of his long sleeves. Oz stared at the man's kind storm grey eyes for a moment before accepting the drink and taking tentative sips. His teeth stop chattering shortly afterwards as he slowly began to warm back up.

"Thank you..." He muttered under his breath, shyly avoiding eye contact once more with the stranger.

"You're quite welcome." He said before turning to look over at someone near the fireplace. "I'm assuming that this is the same Oz you employed this morning, Law?"

"The very one." Oz nearly jumped out of his skin when he realized that the pirate captain from this morning was in the room. He nearly smacked himself in the forehead with his palm when he realized that  _of course_  he would be here. Shachi and Penguin  _said_  they were staying at Bella Inn and that would mean their captain too.

"What a wonderful coincidence that has brought us together again so soon, Oz-ya." Law gave the young lad a frighting smile as he continued to lounge against his navigator.

Oz immediately became rigid, but despite his choking fear of this particular captain due to the man's earlier threat, he managed to find words to speak. "I-i-inde-e-ed... S-s-sir."

"Hmm?" Soleil seemed to be the first of the sisters to noticed the lad's nervousness. "Is something wrong, Oz?"

Oz shook his head, ripping his gaze away from the pirate captain, but before he could reply to the dark haired woman, he was interrupted by a surprised shout.

"Oi! What the hell!?" One of the men at the table shouted as the lot of them jumped back from the table out of shock. One or two of them had even managed to knock their chairs over in their surprise. Oz glanced over before letting out a small chuckle as he suddenly relaxed.

"Teisei, that is  _not_  your food. I also believe it is extremely poor manners for you to be on the table. Get off so these men can continue their meal." Oz calmly spoke to the creature upon the table.

Teisei, a black cat with even darker stripes decorating his fur, glanced up at his master with his silver colored eyes. He stared for a moment before hopping off the table and gracefully trotting over to the fireplace to get warm and dry off.

"What the hell is that thing?" One of the men near the table asked.

"Teisei?" Notte seemed confused by their reactions. "He's just a cat."

"Just a cat? No." Penguin shook his head in disbelief. "A cat is a small little animal that barely reaches halfway past your calf.  _That_  monstrosity probably comes up to my knee, maybe more! That is  _not_  just a cat."

"Teisei is a bit on the big side, I suppose." Soleil relented as she looked at the feline lounging contently in front of the fire. "But he's a cat."

"Whatever you say..." Shachi mumbled, still looking rather unsure, but as long as the 'cat' wasn't dangerous, it really didn't matter.

The men slowly sat back down at the table, not yet taking their eyes off the giant cat or Oz, whichever one had their attention. Much to Oz's distaste, the eyes of the pirate captain and the man who had given him the drink were once more on him.

"So Mister Oz," the man before him started in a smooth, soothing tone. His voice was a little higher than the captains, but still quite deep and masculine. Oz forced his eyes away from the spotted hat of the lounging captain to look at the well manicured face of the darker skinned man before him. "We were just about to have dinner. Would you like to join us?"

"Oh, no! I couldn't!" Oz shook his head. His voice pitched for a second before he managed to return to his low, quite tone. "You're paying guests at Bella Inn and it would be very rude of me to intru-"

"Oh, pish-posh. If you're about to say it'd be rude of you to intrude on our dinner, you better rethink your argument, because you're not intruding in the least." He folded his arms as he easily towered over the small lad. "Now go sit down before I sic Law on you." He quickly turned his attention to his captain before continuing to speak. "And you. Get off of Bepo, wake him up, and come get dinner, Law. I am not about to listen to you bitch at me because your dinner got cold. I'm not going to heat it up again."

Law sent him a nasty look, one that Oz surmised the man beside him was familiar with because he wasn't fazed in the least by it, returning a look of his own. Law broke eye contact first as he turned his attention swiftly to his book before closing it and nudging the orange blob that he was reclining against.

"Oi, Bepo. Dinner." Was all he bothered saying before getting up from the floor.

Oz nearly had a panic attack when the orange blob turned out to be a  _polar bear_  in a orange jumpsuit. Not just a polar bear, but a  _talking_  polar bear.

"Is it fish?" Bepo inquired almost instinctually, since he broke out of mid-snore to ask the question. His head barely off the floor as he asked.

"Of course, Bepo." Bepo sat up quickly at that answer, giving the cook a genuine smile.

"Ooh! Thank you, Leon." He paused when his attention was diverted to the black cat that had suddenly meowed loudly. He listened for a second at the following noises the cat made, causing the rest of the occupants of the room, save Law who was almost to the table at that point, look at him curiously. Finally he turned his attention back to Leon before addressing the tall, lean man. "Teisei was wondering if he could partake in dinner as well. He says that the fish smells wonderful. Also, he would like to apologize now for startling the men at the table. Though it was his intention to spook them, he admits that it was rude of him to do so." He paused for a second as if thinking about the next part of what the black cat said. "He also says that if you let him eat with you, he won't leave the entrails of dead rats in your beds while you're sleeping..."

The room went silent for a moment as the inhabitants tried to process what Bepo had just translated. Oz looked ready pass out in fear of what the dark captain's retaliation would be to such a statement. Even Notte and Soleil were frozen to their spots in shock (though only because they were surprised at how blunt yet oddly polite the cat truly was).

"Teisei!" Oz finally hissed at the cat, giving it the evil eye. The cat didn't even looked bothered by it, instead rather pleased with himself. Oz immediately turned to where Law was now standing, having stopped shy of just sitting down when Bepo translated the second half of what the cat had said, and gave an apologetic bow. "I am so sorry, Mister Trafalgar... Teisei... well, honestly, this is the first time someone's translated his intentions... though that does sound like something he was probably going to do... Sooo... What I'm trying to say is... I'm sorry my cat is being a sadistic little bastard towards you and your men, especially since you employed me to fix your submarine."

Oz was expecting a lot of things from the tall, lanky captain, just not what actually happened. Law didn't seem to take offense to what the cat had said at all, instead found it rather humorous, if his dark laugh was anything to go by. Oz couldn't help but shiver at the sound of such a malicious laugh, but was even more flabbergasted when the man merely sat down at the table and pulled a nearby empty chair next to his before giving his odd reply.

"Not only can you  _partake_  of our dinner, but you can sit next to me as you do so." Law let out another twisted laugh before looking at the lot still standing at the door.

Oz was still buried in a towel, considerable drier than when he came in, holding a half-full cup of tea while standing alongside their hosts with a look of disbelief  _shared_  between all three. Leon was giving him one of his 'you're not serious' looks as he stood there, arms crossed as he watched the black cat frolic happily to the wooden chair.

"Are you all going to join us for dinner or not, ja? It's getting cold and Leon has already decreed that he will not be heating it up again."

Leon nearly smacked him upside the head for that one. Nearly. Though, Law was sure that if it had been just the the crew, the slightly older man would have surely done so.

However, Law's teasing words seem to break the tension within the room, unfreezing the few standing people from their spots and putting those already sitting at the table at ease. As Oz, Leon, Bepo, Notte, and Soleil joined the dinner table, Oz couldn't help but wonder about the sanity level of this particular crew, especially their creepy, sinister captain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I am finally debuting on Ao3 with the one story that I am working on. I have been slowly reworking this story, but I started writing it WAAAAAAYYYY before certain things were announced- like the Polar Tang's name. I have decided to keep it Persephone in this story for specific reasons.
> 
> Yes, I am about to write a lot of notes here at the bottom so that you may understand my intentions with this story and why I started where I did.
> 
> 1) If you have not already noticed, the Heart pirates at this point total to a impressive number of 10. Yes, people, that is my attempt at sarcasm. If you're reading this, you must think I'm at least a passable writer and are interested enough to keep reading. This is my take on Law's own personal journey. Though I didn't start where he gathers up those first 10, I'm introducing the lot of them as I tease you with the prospect of him gaining another member or two or three or whatever on this island.
> 
> 2) At this point in his relationship with his crew, Law only calls two individuals by name without any formalities. The rest of them are either new to him or previous acquaintances that he's slowly fostering stronger relationships with. He's not too good at that, so it might take him a while to drop the 'Mister' even with his own subordinates.
> 
> 3) Leon's of mixed race. In our world, his mother would have been Ethiopian and his father would have been Romani. He's not like super black, but much darker than Usopp. A rich copper tone. Why is this important? I don't know. When my mind first conjured up his image and personality, he was this smooth lean man with a very nurturing nature regardless of the fact that he's one badass pirate. :) He's kinda the ying to Law's yang (or the yang to Law's ying?) though and that's something I hope I'll be able to portray to you, the reader.
> 
> 4) Roanoke Island. Yeah. It's a spoof on the whole missing colony of Roanoke. Not the actual island in North Carolina, which was named after the missing colony...
> 
> 5) Why start my story with some weird kid, his sadistic cat, and two sisters? It seemed like a good place to start. Oz, honestly, was the first legit OC I thought up for this story. His cat... well... I seem to have this weird trend about that cat... It's shown up in a few of my Naruto fan fictions and its just fun to add him elsewhere... though his personality is a little different each time...
> 
> 6) Bella Notte (beautiful night), Bella Soleil (beautiful sun), Pluie (rain). Yeah. They are french words and names and all sort of weather related :) Persephone (the Submarines name) is the name of the goddess of the underworld, wife of Hades. :) I thought that was fitting...
> 
> 7) Why is Bepo the navigator? You may be wondering. Isn't he the first mate? No. Oda-sensei revealed it not too long ago... Bepo is their navigator... which seriously explains the condition of the map Law had of Dressarosa and Green Bit... no really, go look at that map. It's torn, taped and has a big ol' paw print on it. That was before it was revealed that Bepo was the navigator and I told my friend Hitoshirezu Ryu 'What happened to that poor map? Did Penguin, Shachi, and Bepo get in a fight over it or something?' Turns out, that their navigator has paws, not hands... huh.
> 
> 8) I was going to make the first chapter the chapter where Law gains his new nakama... buuuuut it was getting so long that I am making this a two parter... possibly three...
> 
> 9) My intention for this story is that you, the reader, take a journey with the Heart Pirates. Not just Law, Bepo, Penguin, Shachi, some female OC love interest, and a few other named OCs, but a full crew of individual characters that you meet and grow to love, just like how we all love the Strawhats! I am trying to attempt to write a fan fiction where all crew members have a name, a personality, a distinct look, and are not just faceless characters.
> 
> 10) Yes, there will be women joining the crew. But this is a story on nakamaship and adventure (and slice of life in an odd One Piece way about it)! There might be some romance included later, but it is about the relationships the Heart pirates have with one another! Not just one girl with the captain and a few of his crew members!
> 
> 11) Also I looked up his honorific quirk -ya. Its really confusing, but basically he's putting distance between him and others by using the quirk. It's like Bank-ya would mean Banker. Is usually used for places and professional titles, not really names, but, in a way, I think Law uses it to draw lines or to keep distance between him and outsiders.
> 
> Thank you for hanging in there. I'll try to write my notes at the bottom of each chapter instead of the top. So you can get right into the story. I love hearing back from you, my dear readers, and would love feedback.
> 
> Please, take care of this story!
> 
> ~Volleys


	2. Persephone's Heart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece, but I do own my ideas and OCs.

Dinner had been one of the oddest experiences in Oz's life. He was not use to sitting with a bunch of people as they ate heartily, conversed freely, told stories, joked with one another, and laughed uproariously. It had been strange, yes, but Oz had never felt so accepted and connected as he did sharing that meal with the Hearts. There were a few serious men, Elias was on the top of that list followed closely by Law and Leon, both of whom were able to tease and banter freely with all the men within the crew, though Law was more reserved about it than Leon, who used his sly, witty tongue whenever he could. Elias seemed annoyed at most when the men shot verbal barbs at him, but for the most part, he took it without losing his composure, but every once in a while, he'd throw in a cutting remark about the other members of the Heart crew, who'd all laugh at the expense of the man or men Elias had gotten the better of.

Even Orpheus, someone who Oz had been certain was completely serious in nature, laughed and smiled, though he didn't speak out as much as the others. Basil laughed as well, but he never dared to join in the jokes and playful insults like the other men. Oz could tell he was too shy and timid in nature to even think of speaking ill of another one of his nakama. Bepo also didn't participate as much in the dinner conversation, but from time to time, besides saying something incredibly blunt and  _apologizing_  the moment someone talked back to him  _and_  to Oz's extreme horror at first, he'd translate what Teisei had said. Needless to say, his cat was honestly the most cruel, sadistic thing at the table besides Captain Law, who always seemed to quirk a snide smirk at the cat's snarky comments, witty taunts, and blatant observations about the others, besides Law, Leon, Oz, Bepo, Soleil, and Notte at the table. Teisei was at least wise enough on who to taunt and who to respect.

Notte and Soleil were more like Oz at first, watching with great intrigue as to understand the dynamics of the crew. He hadHowever, after a while, Notte, and even Soleil, were chiming in and laughing with the rest of them, leaving Oz alone in his quiet study of the others. He noted the pretty dress that Soleil had picked out that day- a monochrome emerald long skirted dress with beautiful long puffed out sleeves. She had her long hair in an elegant style. Simple, but the small braid kept her silky golden hair from her face and a special made gemstone clip that sparkled when the light hit it right. Notte was wearing a dark blue silk long skirt with a few rhinestones decorating the fabric, almost making it look like the night sky, and a long sleeve black blouse with a rounded collar tucked in at the waist. Her black hair was in an intricate braid and a few loose pieces curing around her face. It was super cute on her.

But he digressed. The ladies' fashion could be admired later. It was this crew that was interesting.

The main group of men that did most of the talking, teasing, and laughing was the mechanics of Persephone. It was easy to see that they were the friendliest part of the whole crew because they had already spent long hours with each other, building their close friendship with one another, long before the Heart Pirates came to be what it was. From what Oz could gleam, they had worked at the same shipyard and often worked on the same projects together as well as work the long, hard shifts upon Persephone. Although, when it came down to it, the four men were paired off, in a way. Shachi and Penguin were not only technically the head mechanics but also the best of friends as were Oddmund and Ignaas. Shachi and Penguin could actually finish each other's sentences when they weren't paying attention to the fact while Oddmund and Ignaas didn't  _need_  to finish their sentences in order to communicate with the other.

To Oz, it was the most outstanding thing he had ever bared witness to. He had never seen such camaraderie before and never felt so a part of a group, even though he had done little to participate in their dinner conversations.

Oh, and the food had been nothing like he had ever eaten before! The main dish was one of North Blue's breed of salmons that had been marinated to perfection and then grilled. It had been flavorful and tender. Everyone had a well sized slice of it on their plates and then a bowl of white rice that smelled like ginger- in fact, it there were bits of ginger mixed into the stable food. And then there had been that- what was it called again, right- eggplant. Oz had never tried it before, hearing that not everyone enjoyed its flavor or its texture, but when the grilled eggplant with the scallions was placed on his plate, the young mechanic felt obligated to try and was not disappointed in the least. The eggplant, even grilled, was soft to bite and juicy and the flavor wasn't usual to the taste, but it wasn't bad. Unique. He'd happily eat it again.

He finished his plate. A rarity for him. Half because it was so good but half because he felt obligated not to waste such wonderful food. He would be feeling full for quite some time.

Once their meal had been eaten, the group returned to their previous activities, with the exception of Basil, who was washing the dishes, and Leon, who was now lounging on one of the couches by the fire reading a thick hardback textbook. Bepo returned to his nap, lying on the floor next to the couch Leon was upon, with Law once more using his polar bear navigator as a pillow as he read his book again. Notte and Soleil retired for the night, making sure that Oz had what he needed in order to go to bed when he was ready, and the rest of the group returned to losing at poker by the hands of Elias.

Oz couldn't help but notice the synergy of the crew. Even when they divided, they still felt like a close knit group. It made Oz slightly jealous to watch, having only found such companionship in the presence of Notte, Soleil, Pluie, and Teisei. And even then, truth be told, Teisei was the only one in which all his barriers were lowered for. All his secrets were confided in the cat and in return the cat honored him with his undying loyalty and affection. The Bella women were wonderful, but Oz was too terrified, too paranoid with all his secrets to lower his barriers and to fully trust and rely on the kind womenfolk. That was why he never took without giving, never gave without taking, and why he never allowed himself to live with them even after all their countless offers. His secrets were too great and too many to trust in the hands of anyone but the few who truly  _knew_  him.

Even so, Oz found himself wishing he could be a part of something as marvelous as what the Heart Pirates had: Nakamaship. It wasn't exactly friendship, not just simple teamwork, or merely being members of the same crew, it was something beyond those bonds. It was having each other's backs and helping them go as far as they can despite how different they might be to each other. It was undying loyalty, unshakable trust, and outlandish faith, not specifically in each other, but in their captain and his ability to lead them. He wondered just what it was about the surely pirate captain that made the others follow him, honestly. To him, the man seemed dark, villainous, sadistic, and, what truly made Oz shiver, a predator above other predators.

That was why he was still up, long after the others finally retired for the night. Sitting criss-cross on a bar stool as he hovered over one of the many round tables in the large lounge, Oz studied the blueprints he had been loaned. He was using one of his many sketchpads to copy the design at a larger scale so he could better understand the machine for tomorrow. He needed to familiarize himself with the workings of the submarine as quickly as possible before Captain Law's deadline. The lad truly didn't want to know if the Heart pirate captain would keep his promise or not.

Letting out a heavy sigh, Oz finished the sketch on his current page and turned to a new one and began on a different section of the blueprint before him. He was almost done with this one and would soon switch to one of the other blueprints he had yet to do. Oz was almost bitter about the pace he had to keep. He would have much rather taken his time and admire such a superlative design and learn it in intimate detail rather than have to basically take a crash course of it. But he rather keep his pathetic life than learn all of Persephone's detailed secrets.

"Still awake, Oz-ya?"

Oz let out a surprised shout as he quickly jumped off the stool, hopped over the table and put some distance between him and the person who had managed to sneak up on him. His heart was hammering in his chest as he quickly identified who was standing right behind the stool he once was sitting on with a cat ate the canary smirk upon his lips. His fuzzy hat was hiding the rest of his expression from view in the dim lighting.

"You scream quite like a girl, Oz-ya." The Heart Captain noted with some amusement laced in his words.

Oz narrowed his eyes at the mocking words and chose not to comment the way he would have liked. "I bet a lot of men would sound quite girlish when surprised."

"I suppose." Captain Law nodded, taking a look at the discarded sketchpad that had fallen to the ground when he had spooked the young lad. He bent over to pick it up as Oz hesitantly came closer to the spot he had once been, unsure if it was safe to be in such close proximity to the dark captain.

"These are quite remarkable sketches. They almost look as professional as the real schematics." Law noted as he stood once more to his full height and began to inspect the sketches within the sketchbook, slowly going backwards from most recent to older pieces.

Oz quickly snatched the book out of the man's hands right as he had turned to his sketches of Boss's pocket watch. "Do you often go through other people's things without their consent? Some of these are private." Oz hissed in his low tones.

"When it suits me, ja." He wasn't even phased by the boy's attitude, a lazy dark smirk resting on his lips as he watched the smaller lad with storm grey eyes.

Oz let out a frustrated sigh, unwilling to argue further with the deadly man. He took his stool, moved it a ways away from him, and perched on it once more as he situated the current blueprint and turned his book back to the page he had left off upon. He readily tried to ignore his unwanted company, but found that to be impossible. If Law wanted something, he'd have it regardless of someone else's feelings.

"So why are you awake at this late hour?" He was once more standing over Oz's shoulder, watching as the lad sketched out a section of the blueprint before him in a much larger scale.

"It is not difficult to see what I am doing, Mister Trafalgar." Oz commented irritably. He hated it when people paid him any attention. It honestly made him anxious to feel their gaze upon him, studying him, judging him.

He could sense the man's aura darken behind him, but he replied as if he was not affected by the boy's comment. "Perhaps the better question would be 'why are you still up', instead Oz-ya?"

"I am still up so that I may learn all I can of your vessel before tomorrow. I do this so that tomorrow will be a productive day instead of another wasted day learning about your unusual vessel."

"So this is your version of a cramming session, ja?" Law summarized, having the nerve to  _tsk_  at him after stating his conclusion. "Do you not know that it is ineffective to do such activities. It would be best if you slept instead."

"I require very few hours of sleep, Mister Trafalgar." Couldn't this man just leave him alone? Couldn't he see he was busy doing something to benefit him?

"Everyone requires at least eight hours of sleep to be at top form, Oz-ya. How can you do your best if you won't sleep the proper amount of hours needed?" Honestly, was this man trying to annoy him or was this how he interrogated people?

"Your facts mean little to a person that has not slept more than two or three hours here and there for the majority of his life, Mister Trafalgar. I could not sleep that long, even if I was paid to do so." Oz gave his rebuttal to the pirate captain's comment.

"So you suffer from chronic insomnia then." Oz felt himself want to sigh in relief as the tall, lanky man finally moved away from behind him and sat in one of the wooden chairs where Oz could see him. It relieved him of some of his anxiety to be able to see the dark captain.

"I wouldn't know. I have never been diagnosed with it to know what the condition is called- or if it was a common condition among other people." Oz admitted, still paying most of his attention to his work. "All I do know is that I don't sleep well and I do what I can with it, which includes working on learning difficult and intricate submarine schematics that require all my focus, Mister Trafalgar."

The lad's blatant request was not missed by the other. Law frowned, crossing his arms and leaning his chair back, but said nothing more as the bald lad fully concentrated on finishing up his sketches of Persephone's designs. However, the silence was not as peaceful as Oz would have wished. His skin felt like it was crawling under the gaze of the pirate captain sitting barely within his peripherals. It felt as if the man was dissecting him with his stare alone and it made his anxiety levels shoot up as well as impossible to concentrate on his work.

After fifteen  _long_  minutes of the uncomfortable silence, Oz's temper finally snapped under all the pressure.

"Why are you up, Mister Trafalgar? Surely it cannot be merely to pester me as I work. I highly doubt that my discomfort is so amusing that you would sacrifice your precious eight hours of sleep to invoke it within me." Oz snapped waspishly as he slammed his feather quill pen against his sketchbook and finally glowered openly at Law's form.

Law let out a cheshire grin as he took in the younger male's infuriated expression. He held himself lazily against the chair, stretched out in a lounging manner as he retained his care-less, laid back attitude. He almost seemed pleased with his ability to get under Oz's skin and cause the boy to lash out angrily despite his usually cowardly nature.

"I suffer from chronic insomnia, Oz-ya." He replied as if it was the simplest of answers.

"So you dare to diagnose me with such a condition because you personally have it yourself? Who are you to even make such allegations?"

"I make such  _allegations_  not simply due to my own personal experiences but because I can see the tell-tale signs you carry of chronic insomnia, Oz-ya. I am a doctor after all and I am more than certified to make such claims."

If Oz had been stupid, foolhardy, or maybe even suicidal, he may have actually acted upon the impulse to slap that stupid smirk from the Heart Captain's face. Instead he stared at the man in a mixture of disbelief and irritation.

"You're shittin' me." Oz said after a beat or two.

How could this guy, a man with multiple tattoos, piercings, and the word  _death_  written on his freaking  _fingers_ , be a doctor? Weren't doctors suppose to be healers, swearing some sort of hippocratic oath, or something? Trafalgar Law was not the kind of man that he could seriously see as any sort of doctor of medicine. Nothing of his appearance or sarcastic personality that would even  _hint_  at it. Nothing.

Okay, maybe his morbidity, studious habits, and fascination with Oz's sadistic cat, but nothing that screamed 'doctor' to Oz.  _Okay, maybe_  a dark doctor, now that Oz thought about it, but not the type of doctor someone would willingly put his or her life in the hands of. Oz knew  _he_  wouldn't.

Oz nearly flinched when he saw the sinister look upon Law's face. He had finally gotten what he wanted out of the lad. Oz could see now that this whole time Law had been poking and prodding with much curiosity at the lad's nature, seeing what made him tick much like how Oz had pulled apart Boss's old pocket watch. Law was  _curious_  about him, much to Oz's horror, and was using this time alone to study him like he was some sort of specimen. If Oz wasn't already on edge about all the attention he was receiving, he definitely was now.

Law had the nerve to tsk at him again as he slowly got up from his spot, causing Oz to visible flinch now that he was aware of what the other man was doing. "Of course I am being honest, Oz-ya. It is almost  _wounding_  that you would not believe that I am a man of medicine. Does my visage not match your stereotype of what a  _good_  doctor should look like?"

"You're more of a  _dark_  doctor than a  _good_  doctor, Mister Trafalgar." Oz admitted, swallowing thickly as he tried to return back to what he had been doing previously. However, his hands were now shaking too gravely with anxiety to sketch properly.

"A dark doctor, ja?" Law stroked his goatee thoughtfully, testing out the sound of words with his own tongue. "I like it. Trafalgar Law, the Dark Doctor. Perhaps if it does not end up my official pirate name, I will find a way to be identified as such as well."

"Bully for you." Oz was still trying to stop his shaking. That and trying not to hyperventilate in front of Law. Ah, screw it! He was just trying to remember what breathing felt like at this moment.

He didn't even realized the world had blurred out for a moment until he felt Law squeezing his shoulder as he stood beside him once more. "Oz-ya, you need to relax your muscles and take deep, long breaths."

"Wh-what?" Oz could help but look at the man with inquisitive yellow eyes. He was shaking badly now due to his high anxiety, extremely tensed muscles and strained, shallow breathing.

"Sit normally, put your head between your knees, and try to regulate your breathing as well as loosen your muscles." Law told him sternly again.

Oz wasn't sure why he listened, but soon he found himself breathing better than a few moments ago while focusing on relaxing his tensed muscles. Law was sitting on the wooden chair again, this time having pulled it close so he could keep his eye on his unexpected patient.

"How long have you suffered from scopophobia, Oz-ya?" Law's temperament seemed to have take a one eighty now from before. He was serious now instead of that sarcastic, sinister attitude previously.

"Sc-scopophobia?" Oz peered at him with great confusion, still shaking from his episode. "Forgive me, Mister Trafalgar, but I am not familiar with medical or psychiatric terms despite my education."

Instead of some sort of sarcastic or mocking tone, the doctor spoke plainly to the lad. "Scopophobia is the fear of being seen or drawing too much attention to oneself."

"Makes sense..." Oz nodded. "The prefix 'scopo-' comes from the Greek word  _skopeō_  which means 'to look or examine' while the suffix '-phobia' comes from the Greek word  _phobos_  which means 'fear'..."

The long pause in the conversation forced the yellow-eyed lad to tentatively peer over at the doctor's face. He blushed when he realized that the man was staring at him with genuine surprise, if only for a moment.

"Stating facts like that makes me feel better." He snapped embarrassedly before he added in, "I told you I was educated."

"Ja, you did." Law agreed before slowly moving his free hand towards Oz's neck. "I am going to take your pulse, so do not jerk away."

Oz weakly nodded as he held still trying not to flinch away from the man's cold, unwanted touch. Law could tell the lad was still nervous so he decided to ask questions while he made sure his patient was calming down from his sudden episode.

"So, from what I've heard, you didn't grow up here. Where are you from originally?" He asked cooly as he started to count the heart beats under his fingers.

"What does it matter, Mister Trafalgar? I am here now, despite the obvious animosity the townsfolk have for me."

"I'm merely making light conversation. Though I am quite interested in knowing the answer."

"You are curious as to why a well educated person would lower himself to live among such uneducated, close-minded, and hateful people when I could dwell elsewhere." Oz corrected him. "I do not like sharing, Mister Trafalgar, you already know this, especially if you have already talked to Miss Soleil and Miss Notte."

"Humor me, ja." He said dryly as he pulled his hand away from the lad's neck, but kept a firm grip of his shoulder despite how uncomfortable it was for him to do.

Oz was still shaking, but even he noticed the conversation was calming his nerves regardless of the fact that it was with the same man that had caused him to go into an episode prior. As long as he didn't look at the man and think too deeply into it, he could manage the attention. And oddly enough, he felt like he was beginning to see what the Heart pirates saw in their captain, if ever so slightly. Plus his cat liked the man, which was highly uncommon for the black cat. Those reasons gave him the courage to try to put some trust in the man.

"I have something I must do. That is why I left the place I was raised and came here. I would have left a long time ago, but I did not have the money nor the transportation to get to the Grand Line."

"You want to go to the Grand Line? Haven't you heard how dangerous it is?" Law couldn't help but ask. The kid was a coward, that was obvious, and he wanted to go somewhere only the brave, foolish, or strong went?

"I've heard the rumors." Oz nodded. "But I have no choice if I wish to fulfill my mother's last request. What I'm looking for is  _in_  Grand Line, I know it."

"Do you have evidence that leads you to this conclusion?"

"Not much. A lead here and there, but for the most part its mainly a feeling. I can't describe it, but I  _know_  its there... in Grand Line." Oz let out a shaky laugh. "I know. I'm willing to go to the world's most dangerous waters all because of a hunch. But the monks said to trust my feelings because mine prove to be correct most of the time."

"Monks?" Law did not miss their mention.

Oz bit his lip, wincing when he realized he had told Law much more than he originally planned, but oh well, what was that one idiom Master Swan use to say from time to time? _Wer 'A' sagt, muss auch 'B' sagen_? Maybe if he told the lanky man enough, he'd lose or satisfy his interest and leave him alone.

"Yes,  _monks_." Oz sighed. "Until I began my journey, I lived in a monastery. A nice, quiet monastery with men who paid little attention to their ward unless it was to teach something."

"You learned there? How? Aren't monks suppose to be disconnected from the world?"

"Well, normally, but it's not like they lived in a different world. They had to make some income somehow, so to get a little coin to support their lifestyle, the monks would set apart some time to scribe books. I learned most of my knowledge through scribing books for hours on end."

"So are you a monk?"

"Due to reasons  _beyond_  my control, I was never allowed to take their vows, not that I believe in their religion to be honest. I was simply their ward till I was old enough to be on my own, per my mother's request. Then I could decided if I wanted to fulfill her last request or live a quiet life in the village at the foot of the monastery walls." Letting out another heavy sigh, Oz murmured, "I almost wonder if I should have chosen the life they had set out for me there instead. It might have been much nicer than this life..."

"Regretting your decisions, Oz-ya?" Law drawled as he finally released the boy's shoulder.

"Merely fantasizing about what would have never worked out." Oz corrected, rolling his shoulder now that Law's grip had been removed.

He suddenly realize he wasn't tense anymore or shaking or straining to breath normally. It seemed that the conversation had fulfilled its intentions.

"I see." Law said shortly, getting up and moving the chair back to its original spot. He rolled his wrist and elbow after having left his arm in such an odd position and looked back down at the lad.

"Going back to bed, Mister Trafalgar? Now that I've bored you with the details of my life?" Good. Anything to get this guy to leave him alone, no matter how much help he had just been (he was the cause in the first place).

"Ja, for now. Leon is going to be up soon to check and see if I'm resting. I would suggest you be lying on the couch before he makes his rounds and nags you about giving your body the proper rest it deserves, regardless of if you can sleep or not."

Oz blinked owlishly. "Seriously? And you let him bully you around like that?"

"Leon is Leon. He's always been fussy about other people's welfare." Law shrugged it off, slowly sauntering back from where he had come from. "Goodnight, Oz-ya."

"Good... night... Mister Trafalgar." Oz was hesitant to even bid the man goodnight.

The dark doctor disappeared down the hall and returned to his bed to rest. Oz was tempted to flop down on the couch and try to sleep as well, but wanted to at least finish the blueprint before he did.

He managed to finish long after midnight and plopped tiredly down on the couch, covered himself, and snuggled with the pillow fifteen minutes before Leon made his 'rounds'. Which, much to Oz's surprise, was the man opening a door or two in the guest hallway, having a quiet conversation with someone, who Oz could only assume was Law. After that he quietly came into the common room, quickly fussing over Oz's poor job of covering himself with the blanket, correcting it in a matter of seconds, before sitting down on another couch and began to read.

Leon was apparently a man who rose before with the sun, because he seemed way too awake and already fully dressed if he was merely checking to see who was up or not. Morning seemed to be his quiet time, where he spent the time silently reading and enjoying the ambient noises that the morning brought.

His presence was calming to be in, causing Oz to relax enough to lightly sleep. Though he would consider himself asleep, he was conscious enough to hear and register sound, especially when the darker skinned man began to hum to himself for a while, a nice deep and soothing tune. Even when the man quit and began to lightly bang around in the kitchen area, Oz found he liked listening the sounds of the man cooking as he slept, falling further into slumber at the ambient noises of the common room.

It was the first real sleep he had managed to get in a long time.

* * *

Shachi glanced over the Penguin who mirrored his look back at him. They wanted him. They didn't care  _what_  they had to do, beg, plead, whine, or even blackmail Law. This kid was worth any amount of agony, suffering, and embarrassment so long as they  _got_  him.  _Even_ if they had to burn down the village and create mass pandemonia  _or_ _ **genocide**_ to get him, they would!

What should have been a long day of going through sections of the submarine's engine room and telling the kid what part was which and helping him further familiarize himself with their vessel ended up being a highly productive day of isolating where the problem stemmed from! Though it had yet been fixed, they could rule out 95 percent of the whole engine and its components.

That alone was impressive since the engine room was  _not_  small. Persephone was cutting edge, but that did not mean she was compact in design. One day, perhaps someone would design a vessel similar to her but much more compact, efficient parts, but since Persephone was among the first of a new,  _expensive_  product- the evolution of technology for her kind would be a slow process.

That was why her mechanics were so vital to the vessel's upkeep. They were the heart of the submarine and kept her going even when she took on heavy damage. They would not let her fall into disrepair. And because of that reason, Shachi and Penguin desperately wanted the bald, slightly heavy, and extremely introverted Oz as a member of their nakama. He might not look like much, that was for sure, but he was a kid full of unexpected surprises! Mechanics of his caliber were  _rare_ , especially ones with little prior experience with an actual submarine and only had a day to study and retain the information found upon the blueprints.

Thus why they were nearly drooling at the prospect of keeping the lad.

"I believe we should possibly end our efforts today and convene here again tomorrow. Boss has specific rules not only about working overtime but also about working when the shipyard is suppose to be closing as well." Oz informed the men as he used a spare rag to wipe grime off of his face. "I will look over my notes and reference back to my sketches of your vessel and will hopefully have more insight upon the situation tomorrow."

"Are you staying at the inn again tonight?" Shachi asked as he too began to clean up a bit from all their work.

"I will not be. I shall return to my place of residence and stay there." Oz shook his head.

"But what if that lady still has that guy there?" Penguin asked curiously, knowing that affairs like that, where the men took a long while to get to and from their destinations, didn't merely wrap up in one night.

"Then I shall sleep under the stars." Oz shrugged. "The weather is much more accommodating tonight than last night, so it will be of no consequence if it does occur. Besides, there's nothing like the smell of air after such a heavy downpour, I would rather enjoy it, truthfully."

"Are you sure?" Shachi asked with an uncertain tone. "It's pretty chilly out today, it'll only get worse at night."

"I am not unfamiliar doing this." Oz waved off. "Besides, I need some time to collect my thoughts and reflect. I cannot do that with your captain breathing down my neck."

The two Heart mechanics said nothing but exchanged knowing looked. "If you say so." The two of them chimed together with a shrug, looking rather indifferent about the subject all of a sudden.

"Yes," Oz eyed them cautiously. "I do." He picked up the few tools and headed over to the entrance to the engine room where they had left the tool box and returned the items. "I need to clock out, but before I do, I need to see you off the premises for the night. So if you wouldn't mind..."

"Oh, yeah. sure." Penguin caught on, finishing wiping himself off with the rag and leaving it. Shachi followed in a similar manner and soon the trio were out of the submarine and almost to the gate of the shipyard.

"So are you going to meet us at the inn in the morning?" Penguin asked, remembering how Oz had been up early this morning tutoring the Bella sisters before they headed out.

"Yes. I will be there by then." Oz agreed before turning and walking towards the office to clock out.

"Good." Shachi smiled, waiting until the lad was out of hearing range before continuing. "That'll give us enough time to convince Captain that we need him on our crew."

"If not, we do have about five more days to try and convince him." Penguin added in before the two of them turned and headed for the inn.

"And if we convince Leon and Elias as well-"

"-then the kid is good as ours, whether he wants to be or not."

* * *

"Look Captain, I honestly don't see your point. At this stage of development, it'll be a stretch  _financially_. Why not be satisfied with what you have currently without going out of your price range?" Elias complained as he looked over the figures for the Heart Pirate's financials.

The two of them were sitting at a table near the fireplace with Leon joining in between his cooking. The rest of the men were out and about running errands or helping the two Bella women with their shopping. Bepo was sleeping at the foot of the couch where he had been the night before.

"You're not looking at the big picture here, Elias. This is about opportunity, not money." Law lounged against the back of his chair, unfazed by his crew member's concern. "Yes, we'll probably not be paying any of the men any time soon. That's fine, ja. They'll get over it. Most of them only use it for whores anyways."

"Or some of us actually use it for  _buying_  food, equipment, clothes, medical supplies, a luxury item here or there, or even information, Law," Leon pitched in, giving his captain a dark look about the 'whore' comment.

"Or someone too prissy to hire a prostitute uses the money for what it was intended for." Law rectified, shooting Leon a look in return.

"I personally agree with Leon, but then again, I don't spend money on whores." Elias huffed grumpily as he tried to play around with the figures to see if he could make it work  _at all_.

"Yeah, you only spend money on making sure that the girls you  _do_  sleep with won't give you STDs." Leon laughed as he stirred a pot of stew.

"Are we still going on that nonsense? Fine." Leon gave him a stern look to which Elias responded to with a irritated huff as he crossed his arms. "Then, in  _my_  defense, noble girls may be of 'higher class' but that  _doesn't_  mean they are immune to diseases. I don't want their cooties if they have them." Elias half-heartedly defended his behavior prior to becoming a pirate.

"It would have been much cheaper to just hire out a prostitute." Law told his treasurer, smirking at the familiarity of the topic, as he tipped his chair backwards and lounge further back into his chair.

"And have to pay them on top of getting them tested?" Elias snorted indignantly. "Not in your life."

" _Besides_ ," Leon teasingly added, "If he wasn't oh-so-very paranoid about catching some sort of disease from his  _lady friends,_  he would have never met us and we would not have him as our financial advisor."

"Yes, a financial advisor who is telling you that it is currently  _not_  a wise decision to take on yet another charity case. We already have Basil, and while his brother is a great asset to your medical bay, I just don't see why we need another one like him."

"Because Oz isn't a charity case." The sole three men in the room all turned their attention to the new person in the room.

Her hair had probably once been a brilliant blue, but was now faded and highlighted by strands of silvery gray. She wore it in a tight bun at the nap of her neck and not a strand of it fell into her face. Her age was apparent both in her face and her steel-blue eyes. Wisdom and experience that men as young as they had yet to gain. She wore a simple teal dress and brown boots with a cane to help her walk. Though she was on in her age, she was still remarkably dignified and beautiful.

"Missus Pluie," Law tipped his hat to her as he nodded her direction. "How are your joints treating you today?"

"No storms brewing tonight, Mister Law, and I would appreciate it if you would address me as Auntie Pluie instead. I've never been one for such formal titles as Miss or Missus. My sister has always been the one who was obsessed with such frivolous formalities." Pluie told him as she slowly made her way towards the table they sat at. "And just so you know I meant it, I will tell you again. Oz is not a charity case."

Her eyes landed on Elias as she said the last line. "And neither is that young lad, Basil. He  _physically_  works thrice as hard as you do, young man, and does it without complaint. That is a very good trait in an employee, allow me to tell you that."

"Yes, ma'am." Elias nodded, he didn't dare try to refute her statement, especially since it was mostly true.

"Good." Pluie stated as she sat down in a spare chair and turned her attentions to Law. "Now, what is this about my dear Oz? Are you truly interested in taking him on as a part of your crew, Mister Law?"

"Perhaps." Law cryptically answered her, getting a frown in return from the woman.

"It is either you are or you aren't, Mister Law. There is no  _maybe_  in it."

"Yes, Missus Pluie, we are considering extending an invitation to join our crew to Mister Oz." Leon kindly answered before Law could. Pluie shot him a quick look about adding 'missus' before her name, but didn't bother correcting him over it.

"Well if this is how you're going to go about it, it'll never work." The eldest Bella woman told the three of them in a stern tone, eyeing them coyly. "Oz is a tricky one, he is. He's not going to join your crew willy nilly just because you simply asked him."

"No?  _Auntie_  Pluie?" Law leaned his chair into the proper position as he leaned further towards the woman, suddenly interested in what she had to say. A smug look upon his face as he watched her in a 'cat ate the canary' way. "And if that isn't the right way of going about it, what is?"

"Make him an offer he knows he can't refuse." Pluie said with a smirk on her lips and her eyes dancing with mischief. "And no, Mister Law, threatening to kill him won't work this time. If you want him to join, he has to believe that he has the final say in it. You offer him a portion of the deal and allow him to make the rest of the terms. That way he still feels he has control of his situation."

"Oh? And what sort of offer should I make to the boy?" Law couldn't have been more pleased with these turn of events. No trying to figure out how to trick the boy into joining, he was being handed the perfect plan by someone quite familiar with him.

"I think you know what it is he wants." Pluie said with a wiry grin.

And indeed, Law  _did_  know what the lad was after. He smiled darkly as he quickly formulated his plans within his mind. He could easily put the information he had collected on the lad last night into use. However, he was curious about one thing.

"Why are you offering us such advice, Auntie Pluie? I would think that you'd prefer to keep the boy safe on the island where you could monitor his situation instead of handing him over to the care of pirates." Law couldn't help but be suspicious of her intent.

"Mister Law, I know you are a smart man." Pluie began as she leaned back in her seat and crossed her legs to get more comfortable. "I am no longer a woman in my prime, despite my best attempts to keep myself fit, and have two young women placed in my care for an unknown amount of time until either my sister comes for them or their elder sister, which of the two, I am not certain of. Until then, my priority is to watch my nieces and care for them. Oz, unfortunately, is not my responsibility and he has made me aware of this fact  _constantly_  by declining my hospitality whenever he can. I can do nothing for him despite how much I wish I could."

She paused as she looked around the room, her expression became reminiscent for a time. "This inn is all I have left of my late husband and when it is time for me and my charges to leave, I'll be burning it to the ground. Oz will have no where safe to go  _when_  it happens. That's why I want to make sure I  _know_  he's taken care of. Anywhere will be safer for him than here at that point, even in the care of pirates.  _That's_ why I offer you such advice, Mister Law." Her eyes focused back on his as she finished.

The two of them held each other's gaze for a while before Pluie added one last fact in with a humorous snort. "And besides, that 'damnable' cat of his likes you. You can't be all that bad if that cat likes you and Oz will be willing to trust you more because of it."

"So... because that cat  _thing_  likes Captain Law, you're willing to assist us in convincing someone to become a pirate? You do know what pirates are, don't you?" Elias was having a hard time wrapping his head around this one.

Faster than any of them could blink, Elias found himself staring down the barrel of a gun. Out of all of them, Elias naturally reacted the worst, falling out of his seat and landing hard on the floor as Leon and Law readied for a counterattack, in case the woman did decide to shoot their nakama.

"I know what pirates are, little boy. I know what they look like, how they talk, how they walk, how they act, hell, I know what pirate  _women_  are like. Don't think I'm some little old naive woman, especially if you are headed to the Grand Line. That'll get you killed out there." Her voice was stern and her eyes were hard as she looked down at Elias from her seat. She slowly returned to a more relaxed state, putting the safety back on her gun before putting it back in its place under her dress. "My first late husband was a damn good pirate and I had the chance to meet some of the finest pirates of my time.  _And_  perhaps it is because of my time spent as a pirate that I trust the judgement of a  _cat_  over the judgement of a person. Animals are sensitive to who'll they'll trust, especially ones as smart as him."

"I... I see..." Elias swallowed hard as he slowly climbed back up into his chair. Law was already leaning back against his chair again, like he hadn't been ready to cut the woman's head off if she dared to fire upon his nakama, and Leon resumed his cooking as he listened.

Pluie eyed Elias a bit longer before speaking again. "What's the matter, boy? Not use to a weapon being drawn on you?"

"He's not particularly fond of guns, Auntie Pluie. Ignore him, please." Law waved off, wanting to return to the subject at hand. "So because the cat, Teisei, likes me well enough, you think that Oz-ya will actually join my crew if I extend the invitation in the  _correct_  manner?"

"Yes." Pluie nodded, a playful smile back upon her lips.

"Ja, I see, Auntie Pluie." Law was grinning that sinister smile of his as he nodded his head in thanks. "I will do just that,  _if_  he is actually capable of fixing my vessel. If not, I follow through with my previous promise."

"If  _that's_  what you must do, Mister Law." Pluie sighed as she slowly got out of her seat and used the cane to stabilize her balance. "But, believe me when I tell you, that's not going to be the case." She eyed him with a secret smile upon her lips. "Oz is a remarkable kid. He'll come through for you."

"I will take you at your word, Auntie Pluie." Law lazily said as tipped his head at her while crossing his arms against his chest.

"Smart boy." She praised him as she slowly made her way back to her room, no doubt to rest after her little display.

The three of them watched her leave before resuming the conversation. Elias now more willing to talk since the gun was far away from him. "I  _hate_  guns."

"We are well aware of that, Elias." Law droned as he continued to recline comfortably in the chair.

It was no secret that the man had a huge distaste for guns. Why? No one knew, but they figured it stemmed from a childhood trauma. From what Law and Leon knew about him from when they had originally recruited him, his family was full of noble sons who were all trying to cut each other out of the family will. Elias had been dealt with early enough in the 'game', but by what means exactly, the two weren't sure. However, what was worse about his distaste of guns was when  _they_  had to deal with him after he had been put in a situation with one. He was just as pissy as a violently hormonal woman during her menstrual cycle, possibly worse. There was a running bet on that mystery. Law personally was betting on 'worse than'. Leon had refused to even participate, so Law put him down as 'better than' when the older man wasn't looking. Either way, Law was going to win  _something_.

"So," Leon quickly cut in before Elias could begin his 'gun' rant, "in leu of this new information, what say you about your previous statement, Elias?"

"Still can't afford it." He snapped grumpily, "Not without cutting some pay from  _someone's_  wages. Why did you insist on salaries again?"

"That way I don't have to hear anyone whine about giving him beli for  _this_  or  _that_  or a  _whore_." Leon shot Law a nasty look about bringing  _that_  up again. "Their money, their business with what they do with it, but I get left out of the equation. Besides, they are getting paid a hell of a lot less than what most of them are use to at the moment."

"Hmm, I suppose I understand. Plus, depending on the haul, it is quite possibly cheaper to pay a steady wage- one that may be increased over time and good fortune- over promising a percentage of the loot." Elias was playing with his numbers again in his leather bound notebook. He was given peace as he began to play with the numbers he was way too familiar with as he  _tried_  to do what had been asked of him.

Finally he came to his conclusion. "If I can cut some of the wages a bit, I suppose we could. But then there's living expenses and meals..." He was fiddling with the numbers again. "It  _could_ work. But I don't see how to convince anyone to actually  _agree_  to a wage cut without having to hear them bitch about it!"

It was at that moment, the front door to the inn opened. The three men in the room glanced over at the entrance in time to see both Shachi and Penguin making a beeline for Law. Both of them had very serious expressions on their faces which, while it wasn't  _uncommon_ , was usually not mixed with such an air of determination and desperation.

"Is something the matter?" Law questioned slowly, unsure of what the two of them were even going to say. Hadn't they been with Oz all day? What would make them act like this after only one real work day with the kid.

"We want him." It was Penguin who spoke first.

"It doesn't matter  _what_  we have to do. We  _want_  him!" Shachi added on, slamming his hands onto the table as he looked pleadingly at Law.

"Who? That boy: Oz?" Elias was the one to respond to their pleas first with his surprised question.

"Of course Oz! He's the only one on this island  _worth_  begging for!" Shachi ranted, irritated that they would even  _ask_  of who they were speaking of. It should have been obvious!

"That kid was able to narrow down 95 percent of the whole engine in  _one_  day! That would have taken us three days at least!" Penguin explained their reasoning, since Elias usually had to be on board before the Captain ever decided on a  _financial_  decision.

"I don't know," Elias tsked, looked at his figures in his notebook as if he hadn't earlier. "With how tight the budget is currently... I don't think I can squeeze him in without cutting  _something_."

Penguin and Shachi exchanged a look before both of them spoke simultaneously. "Take his pay out of our pay then."

Elias looked at them with wide eyes. "Are you  _sure_?"

"Will we be able to get the kid as one of our mechanics?" Penguin asked seriously.

"If he agrees, then yes, that could work." Elias agreed.

"Then  _yes_!" Shachi agreed. "As long as that's the only way, I'm more than willing to take a cut in my wages for a while till we  _can_  afford him."

"Same here."

"Then I  _suppose_  I could do that..." Elias was already arranging the new budget. "But it is the  _captain_  that gets the final say. I'm just the bookkeeper."

Both men turned their looks back over to Law, pleading him with their eyes to say yes. Law, who had previously been on the verge of laughter over how underhanded Elias could be, quickly put on a serious look as he pretended to ponder the answer.

"I  _suppose_  it wouldn't hurt to have another mechanic on board. Ja, I'll talk with him and see if he might be interested in joining. Is that alright with you two?"

"Y-yes Captain!" Both of them were elated that both Law  _and_  Elias had agreed upon it.

"Good." Law nodded before picking up the book that he had been reading  _prior_  to his discussion with Elias. "Now, I believe that Ignaas and Oddmund are out about the town with Miss Soleil and Miss Notte. They were suppose to be back about fifteen minutes ago. Go find out what is taking them."

"Yes Captain!" Both men chimed together before galavanting out the door in a jovial manner.

The moment both men were out of earshot, Leon decided to tell both men what he thought of their underhanded tactics. "You two are quite the bastards, I hope you realize that."

"Ah, ah, ah," Law tsked as he waved a finger at his cook, still reading as he spoke to the older man. "You said  _nothing_  during that whole transaction. You're an accomplice in all our underhanded deeds, regardless of if you didn't actively help."

"Your silence was all that was required to make you an accessory to our crime." Elias supplied in, working on a new financial spreadsheet.

"I'm quite surprised at you, Leon." Law feigned disappointment as he glanced up to see the irate expression on Leon's face due to his taunting. "You were always the good boy in the group. Where did we go wrong?"

"Or right?" Elias threw in with a smirk.

"Bastards; the both of you." Leon harrumphed. "Playing off of their ignorance like that. Normally, I wouldn't give a shit who you two scam, but they are our nakama. There's a  _line_ , Law, Elias."

"Oh don't be so upset." Elias dismissed the comment easily, "Now I don't have to hear anyone bitch about their wages being cut to accommodate Captain's whims."

"That's right," Law nodded, still talking in that condescending  _tone_  Leon hated. "They  _volunteered_. It made them feel good about themselves, knowing that they got what they wanted by any means possible. If you tell them now, you'll have shattered their happy reality." Law let that sink in for a moment before adding. "Plus, either way, their pay was going to get cut. Now, it's just theirs, not the whole crews'. Think of it that way _, if you must,_  Leon _._ "

Leon glared at both of them before huffing out. "Fine." However, before Law could think he won entirely without some sort of stipulation, Leon added, "But I talk to the boy before you make your offer.  _And_  you offer him a  _fair_  deal. You think you've heard me bitch at you before? I promise you that if you don't give that boy a fair deal you'll know the true meaning of regret."

"Yes, yes. Don't bully Oz-ya." Law dismissed. "It's almost wounding that you think so little of me, Leon. It's like the last ten years of our relationship mean nothing to you. Where is your trust in me?"

Leon gave Law a long hard stare. "Do I need to verbally review the incriminating evidence against you pertaining to your ability to intimidate people into doing what you desire? I have ten years to accumulate such allocations against your character."

"He has a good case against you." Elias hummed, entertained by the two's bantering. "What is your riposte to such an accusatory statement, Law?"

"Hmm?" Law drawled, not bothered by Leon's words in the least. "Nothing much, Elias. I have plenty of stories about Leon himself, ja."

"No you don't." Leon rolled his eyes, well aware of what was coming next. He stirred his cooking, bracing himself for what was about to come.

"Of course I do." Law corrected him. "I  _have_  had ten years to build a case against you."

"Mmhmm." Leon hummed with disbelief evident in his nonverbal noise.

"I do." Law insisted, deciding to make mention of one of these 'cases'. "If you recall, while at the university, you stole all the cadavers from the med lab, dressed them up, and put them on random park benches throughout the campus."

Leon looked up from his cooking to give him a vexed look. "No, Law. That was  _you_."

Elias suddenly looked disturbed as he looked up from his work to stare at Law. "That was  ** _you_**?!"

"No." Law frowned, sitting up properly in his chair as he thought about the event. "That was Leon. They called him into the office about it after receiving an anonymous tip that he was the one who did it."

Leon scowled even more. "First of all, I had an alibi. I had been at the restaurant doing a double shift all night. My story checked out in a matter of seconds. Secondly, that anonymous tip? That was you, you bastard. You set me up after  _you_  did it!"

The look of clarity overcame Law's face as he grinned darkly as he reminisced. "Ja, that's right. That was me. I remember now. I had been up for the last seventy-two hours and was running off of alcohol, energy drinks, and coffee. Possibly a narcotic." Law turned serious after a moment. "As a doctor, I professionally wouldn't suggest mixing those conditions together."

"Right," Leon groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. "That's when the campus shrink thought that putting you on a prescription for your PTSD might improve your mood. I got her to recant that decision within a week of you taking those meds."

"If it means anything to the two of you, I would appreciate remaining ignorant of whatever the hell you two are talking about." Elias was suddenly not very interested in the two men's stories anymore. Then again, he had been one of the students who had stumbled across one of those cadavers. Finding out that Law had been the culprit was not something he wanted to know. Especially since he was now traveling with the man as a member of his pirate crew.

Before Law could make some comment about what Elias had said, Leon returned to the original point of the conversation. "The point is Law, you're not known for being the best 'people-person'. That's always been my job. And since Oz is highly skittish already, let me talk to Oz before you offer or work anything out with him, alright?"

Leon gave Law a long look, the other staring at him with a calculative gaze before sighing and giving in. Damn Leon and his valid arguments. "Ja, you talk to Oz-ya  _before_  I attempt to recruit him. But don't drag your feet.  _Aufschub bringt Gefahr_ " Law got up from the table and joined Bepo by the fire, leaning against the polar bear as he resumed his reading.

"Do not worry about that, Law _._ _Das ist kinderleicht_ _._ " Leon assured him, "I will talk to Mister Oz before he manages to repair our submarine."

" _If_  he manages." Law corrected him, his eyes never drawing away from the book now that he had reopened it.

"It's not a matter of  _if_ , Law, but  _when_. And I will talk to him before that time." Leon corrected the younger man.

" _If_  you say so, Leon." Law dismissed, knowing full well that chances were that Oz was going to fix his vessel before the week's end.

"I do say so." Leon retorted sharply, returning his full attention to his cooking.

Elias sat alone at the table, both men no longer paying him any attention, shaking his head in disbelief. What sort of pirate captain did he agree to work for?! Elias shot a short glare towards Leon, who was too busy cooking to notice, internally blaming the charismatic man for all his future troubles. With a pirate captain like Law, it was only a matter of time before he, Tanglewood Elias, got shot.

He hated guns...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So one last chapter before the Roanoke Island is bye-bye and they are moving on.
> 
> There are a few things I would like to discuss, but I think I'd like to hear your thoughts on what is written before I really explain anything...
> 
> Feedback is definitely crucial for this story. Especially since I am taking such a different route on Law's personality and relationships with his various crew members.
> 
> For my readers I will list Law's current crew and their occupations, just so you know what he has so far.
> 
> Trafalgar Law - Captain and Doctor
> 
> Grimmhart Leon - First Mate, Chef, and Relief Doctor (will go into more detail about Leon and his jobs later in story)
> 
> Tanglewood Elias - Bookkeeper and Financial advisor
> 
> Bepo the Bear - Navigator (Mascot)
> 
> Orpheus - Medical Assistant
> 
> Basil - Cooking Assistant
> 
> Shachi and Penguin - Head Mechanics
> 
> Ignaas and Oddmund - Mechanics
> 
> Persephone - Submarine
> 
> There will be more joining the crew as the story goes on, but this is pretty much the people Law starts out with. And, as you might have noticed, he refers to everyone but Bepo and Leon as 'Mister' before their name. At this point in the story, he's still quite unfamiliar with most of his crew members and it will take him a while to drop the title, having the habit of calling anyone not closely associated with him with proper formalities. The more comfortable and familiar this version of Law is with his nakama, the less formal his speak.
> 
> I will admit shamelessly, though, that reviews definitely fuel my motivation to write...
> 
> Looking forward to your thoughts and feedback~
> 
> ~Volleys-chan
> 
> **Wer 'A' sagt, muss auch 'B' sagen: It's a German idiom that basically means 'Finish what you start'. 'In for a penny, in for a pound'. It's basic translation is: Those who say A, must say B as well.
> 
> Aufschub bringt Gefahr: German for Delays are dangerous; or "strike while the iron is hot". Basic translation: Deferment brings danger
> 
> Das ist kinderleicht: That's easy. Basic translation: It's a breeze.
> 
> I want to add a little more of other languages, but mostly idioms and basic words or phrases. I will translate them at the bottom if I don't do so right afterwards. The world of One Piece, with as many hundreds of thousands of islands would have many other languages as well, and I want to add that. So far, I am using German sayings. Law, according to Oda, would have been German if he lived in our world. Leon, according to me, would have been a Roma. But he also is use to Law and is well versed in Law's native tongue. Law will only speak his mother tongue around or to Leon and possibly Shachi and Penguin and Bepo, but mostly Leon because he understands the language.
> 
> I promise, I will eventually get more into the world building part later on about mother tongues and the universal language.


	3. Simply a Spare Part

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Do not own One Piece, just my imagination and my OCs

The sky was littered with brilliant stars as no clouds from last night's storm were to be seen. It was one of the few perks of living in such a small, underdeveloped town as this one and Oz was extremely glad for it. He had been spoiled as a child living at the monastery high on a mountain with the monks who had very few luxuries outside their basic needs. The young lad stared at the stars a bit longer, charting them quickly and taking note of his favorite constellations before returning his concentration to the blueprints he was still borrowing.

Tabitha indeed still had her male friend over and he had little interest in making his presence known to the man, so out into the woods he went and found his favorite roost up in an old oak tree with large, massive branches. He was normally a timid child, but his timidness had since amplified after leaving the safety of the monastery to fulfill his mother's final wishes. Despite that, there was something about heights, mostly when he was in a tree, that calmed him greatly. He often took advantage of the forest right outside the town when he needed to put his constant fraying nerves at ease. Teisei also appreciated being outside and lounging in a tree, but Oz figured it was because he was able to see unsuspecting prey and pounce before they could even realize the fatal danger they truly were in.

Oz felt, that as a child raised by monks, he should have felt bad that his cat was so apt at killing, but instead, he was pleased that his cat was more than willing to share. Oz, despite being raised by mainly vegans (because there had been some still unable to cut it all out from their diets completely despite their efforts), was very much happy to eat meat and produce like dairy and eggs whenever it was available. Not only that, he was much happier when he was allowed to eat deliciously cooked meals, like what the Bella women and the Heart Pirate chef, had provided to him.  _Especially_  Leon's cooking. He had never tasted anything as exquisite, not even Notte was as good as a cook.

In fact, the lad had walked passed the Bella Inn on his way to the forest and had managed to get a whiff of what Leon had been cooking for dinner and almost succumbed to the temptation of going in and staying the night like previously. However, one familiar note of Trafalgar Law's voice easily shook him of that foolish notion and he continued on his way. The Heart Captain put him on edge and did so purposely with gleeful eagerness. But had Law not been there, Oz might have actually bypassed his own rules about going into the Bella Inn and joined them for dinner, if they would have allowed it.

Damn, he could still remember the scent of the food, even now, like it was actually real instead of a lingering memory.

Oz almost fell out of the tree when a voice spoke beside him. "Quite a view from up here. I can see why you chose this location. The stars are shinning quite beautifully tonight."

The lad sprang up quickly, twisted around, and, as previously mentioned, almost fell out of the tree. Had it not been for his last minute instincts that caused him to catch himself and a sense of balance the other had never witnessed in another person, he very well might of. Oz was standing upon one leg, having used the rest of his bodyweight to catch his balance. He let out a heavy sigh, using a hand to rest against the tree as he slowly slip back to his sitting position against the tree, glad that he had managed to catch the blueprint he had been studying as he had leapt up.

"Mister Leon." Oz breathed out. "You are much quieter than I originally perceived you to be. Almost as quiet as your captain, if I dare draw a comparison."

"I didn't mean to frighten you, I had thought that my gift would be enough to draw you from your reverie." The dark skinned man said with an apologetic smile, holding up a disposable white box. It smelled of exactly what Oz thought had been nothing but a daydream. "But it seems that you were too far gone in thought to notice."

Oz blushed. He had only not noticed because that had been the object of his very thoughts. He stared at the box, his mouth watering at the sight of it but was hesitant to take it.

"Did you really leave the warmth of the Bella Inn to search a cold, dark forest just to give me some of the dinner you made your crew?" How could he  _not_  be skeptical of that? His interaction with Law last night was still very fresh in his mind and he wondered if this was to be round two, only with Leon instead of Law. For a split second, Oz decided that it might be well worth a round two, because, damn it, he wanted that food.

"I might have had an alternative reason," Leon hummed. "But first, take the food will you? You're eyeing it like you haven't eaten since yesterday."

Oz kept it to himself that he  _hadn't_  eat since yesterday. He had hightailed it out of the inn that morning after quickly tutoring Notte, she had been wearing a really cute maroon skirt that plumed out from the waist down to around her ankles, showing off her cream underskirt a bit and her beautiful black close-toed heels- Brogue lace-up oxfords with wingtips and a thick, tall heel if he remembered what she had told him the first time she had worn them. Not to mention that elegant bun she had managed to fix her gloriously black wisps of hair into. How did she always manage to sweep her hair up into such sophisticated styles with such ease? It made Oz jealous in some ways, but he kept up his habit of shaving regardless. He couldn't probably handle hair with such ease. He'd probably have a wild mess like Trafalgar Law's. No thank you.  _Anyways_ , because he had fled, he hadn't been able to get any breakfast that Leon had made nor did he have time to get lunch when he had been working with Penguin and Shachi. It wasn't unusual, however, for him to skip meals, regardless of if he  _looked_  like he didn't. Instead, he took the box hesitantly before opening it up, inhaling the aroma of the food, and, with the plastic utensils that had been placed inside, began eating.

Leon kept quiet as Oz ate, allowing the boy to eat his hard earned meal in silence as he personally began to stare up at the stars. When the boy was mostly done eating, Leon finally broke the silence with a passing memory.

"I love stargazing. Always have. I use to drag Law, Pen, Chi, and Bepo onto any roof I could and we would lay on there, stargazing." He let out a pleasant laugh as he added further. "Actually, I think Bepo became interested in navigation because I use to chart the stars aloud until he fell asleep. I had intended to use the method as a way to lull Law asleep, but it worked better on Bepo."

"Bepo's not that old, is he?" Oz could honestly not see the bear being more than a few years old, but then again, he was an animal and grew up faster than a human did.

"Oh, no, he's older than most would think, actually. He's actually not a bear, but rather something called a Mink. Rare race and not often found outside their island." Leon shrugged. "Law brought him back one day when we were traveling through a pretty dense forest. Stole him outright from a slavers camp because he didn't like what they were doing to the poor cub. I was pissed at first, because I knew  _I'd_  be the one taking care of the little cub, and,  _while_  I was right, I could see that Bepo had a good affect on Law."

Oz was internally shocked at the revelation that the bear wasn't actually a walking, talking animal, but rather a breed of walking, talking... er... furry? He was honestly having a hard time seen the difference, but he mentally gave Leon the benefit of the doubt on this one. Perhaps it was a lot like a Fishman (he'd never seen one, but he had scribed an entire book on them about ten times), but instead of a sentient being looking like a human mixed with a fish, it was more like a human mixed with an animal? One thing was sure, the world was more amazing than Oz had ever given it credit for.

"You've known your captain for a long time now, haven't you. You, Penguin, Shachi, and Bepo, though Elias seems to be a close second." Oz commented, pointing out a few things he had noticed in his observations from his meal with the Heart Pirates and his late night conversation with Law. "Out of all his nakama, he seems to be most at ease around you all. You, specifically, could say or do anything to him and, while he may not like it, isn't going to rebuke you like he would the others."

"Very astute." Leon seemed pleased by that. "Not something that everyone picks up right away. Yes, I have known Law since he was but a young boy. We've been very close ever since childhood and I've found myself watching out for him since we met. He's a little odd, but he's a good man. He just doesn't like a lot of people and has a hard time associating with others. Elias is similar in some ways, so he and Law get along better than most, despite having known him less than the rest of us."

"He seems like an animal person." Oz noted, remembering how easily his cat got along with the man and how kind he was to Bepo.

"He very well might be. Which is ironic, since he studied to be a human doctor, not a veterinarian." Leon let out a chuckle.

Oz found talking to Leon was nothing like talking to Law. His nerves were put to ease with this man while Law made him feel like he was ready to combust with how on edge he was. Perhaps that was because Leon didn't glance at him much, too busy staring at the stars to stare at him. Oz liked that.

"So. You mentioned you had an alternative reason for coming to find me..." Oz had finished his meal and was now curious about what the other man had intended when he had set out with food in hand to find him out in the forest.

"I did make mention of that, didn't I?" Leon gazed over at Oz with a calm smile. "I guess you could say I was interested in what I've been hearing of you. Shachi and Penguin cannot rave enough about you, you do realize this. Miss Notte, Miss Soleil, and Missus Pluie also have nothing but wonderful things to say about your skills and your character."

"So... you came here because you were... curious?" Oz couldn't help but be skeptical.

"Yes. That's a small part. The larger part is what Law said to me about you." Leon's gaze seemed keener than it was seconds before. "Your desire to go to the Grand Line is very gutsy for someone who seems so skittish of any sort of attention as yourself."

"Perhaps too gutsy for someone like myself." Oz sighed heavily. "I can hardly stand to work at the shipyard half the time and no one there cares enough about my person to actually give me any attention, unless Boss calls me out. But it still feels like their eyes bore into me."

Why was he confessing this to the Heart pirate? Did he put something in the food to loosen his tongue? Oz was starting to get nervous about the other man the longer he was there and the more he found himself talking openly with the man.

"Law did make mention that you suffer from scopophobia." Leon's eyes turned away from Oz, allowing the lad to relax a little. "However, I don't think he understands how severe your case may be. You do well to cover it up, but you have attacks like the one you had last night quite frequently, do you not?"

"Y-yes..." Oz admitted, feeling the tightness of his muscles as he became more nervous about the man's attention. He was more perceptive of the human nature than Law was and he seemed quite the learned man, despite being the crew cook.

"Only after you left the monastery you were raised in, correct?"

Damn. The Heart Captain kept nothing in confidentiality when it came to this other man, did he? Oz felt his heart hammering in his chest as his throat felt like it closed, not allowing him to speak. He found himself  _nodding_  instead. That was it. The man spiked the food, that had to be it. There was no other reason why he'd be so willing to share such private information with him.

"Damn, I was right. You do have attacks often and I'm being as non-invasive as possible." Leon had to pull the lad over to his lap before the boy managed to fall out of the tree in his episode. "Come along, Mister Oz, work with me a bit here." He began to shift the lad so that Oz was able to put his head between his knees as Law had made him do the night before. "Deep, long breaths." Leon ordered from behind him, his hands quickly steadying the boy before he did as Law had and began to check his heart rate. His free hand was utilized to hold Oz's shoulder as his thumb rubbed small circles into Oz's shoulder as a sign of comfort.

Oz was shaking like a leaf as he focused on his breathing once more. Two episodes so close together were exhausting, especially since it took days sometimes to fully recover from simply one. Usually he suffered two or three a month and only when his anxieties got the better of him. Oz felt nearly boneless when Leon allowed him to sit back up and fell against the older man's chest and rested against it in fatigue. Leon did nothing more but situate the two of them so Oz could rest better against him without Leon worrying about the lad falling right off the tree limb.

"What suddenly brought that on?" Leon asked, keeping his tone calm and trying to see where the sudden burst of anxiety had come from. Asking one or two probing questions about his phobia shouldn't have triggered it as quickly as it did.

"I... umm..." Oz closed his eyes, embarrassed now that he had calmed down that he had even suspected the man of messing with his food. He would have noticed if anything had been off. "You're really easy to talk to."

Leon shifted behind him. "I see. That freaked you out a bit, hmm?"

"Thought it might have been something in the food. Sorry." Oz wanted nothing more than to sleep. He was suddenly too tired for much else. He wondered it Leon would let him sleep on him for a bit.

"Mister Oz," Leon's words were so relaxing. He had a lot of practice and was extremely charismatic. It had never been anything that was done to the food. Leon was good at coaxing things out of people through his way with words and demeanor. "I promise you this. Of all the things I would do to a person, I would never poison their food with any sort of drug. I vow on my honor as a chef."

"Mmkay." Oz slurred, eyes closing unwillingly. Leon's aura was so calming and soothing, much like his tone of voice. It was putting him to sleep.

"Now if only Law was this easy to lull to sleep." He heard Leon tsk before he was out.

Oz barely registered much else as he slept. He was able to tell when Leon, with him in his arms, jumped out of the tree. He could sense when he had been set down for a second before being picked up, much like a sleeping child being cradled in his parent's arms, and Oz was able to tell that Leon was walking. He should have stirred, but at this point, he was too exhausted to care what Leon was doing. The man was oddly caring and Oz felt no danger in being carried in his arms.

There was a point when he was suddenly enveloped in warm air, perhaps they had gone inside, and he could hear quiet voices talking. One was Leon, he could feel the vibrations of the man's voice coming from his chest, and the other could only be Law.

"...another panic attack...prone to them... let him rest..." He couldn't make out much more than that from Leon's conversation.

"...bed... check up in the morning... keep an eye..." Law responded.

Leon began moving after that and the young lad was put to rest on a bed, boots taken off of his feet, blankets wrapped around him, head on a pillow, and his hat taken off as well. Oz felt the weight of Teisei as the cat hopped up onto the bed before curling against his chest. Leon closed the door and Oz heard nothing more of the outside world, given peace at last.

* * *

Leon sat down against the sofa, tossing the canister of blueprints he had slung over his shoulder against the coffee table and pulled Oz's bag off his shoulder and to the side of the couch. It was late and only Law was up to offer the man any company. Leon had much he wished to discuss with his captain about the lad and was still registering a few of those discoveries he had managed to uncover, however unintentional some of those discoveries had been.

"So how was  _your_  talk with Oz-ya? It seems that  _your_  results were similar to mine." Law smirked sardonically at Leon. "Perhaps your results were a bit worse than mine, since you ended up having to carry him back, ja."

" _Verpiss dich_ , Law. I blame your attempt for his state of being. The kid's running off of high levels of stress because of the restrictions  _you've_  placed on him." Leon nearly snarled. He didn't like the idea of having failed just as poorly as Law at making conversation with anyone. He was  _good_  with people, unlike Law. "From what I've gathered so far, there may be several stressors in Mister Oz's life other than what  _you've_  placed on him that cause him to have panic attacks. Your interference has merely elevated those stressors as well as add a few more, causing his attacks to occur more frequently than previously."

"So I'm to blame for your failure." Law gave him an aghast look, one Leon knew to be fake, insincere, and full of mockery. "Why Leon, can you really blame  _me_  for your lack of success? Perhaps you're merely not the people person you thought yourself to be."

Leon narrowed his eyes and decided not to make mention of anything he found. Law deserved any humiliation he would receive in the near future if they happened to convince Oz to join their motley crew of rookie pirates. Law, however, was familiar with that scornful look and knew when to drop a joke.

"Alright, Dr. Grimmhart, what is your expert advise upon the situation, ja? You studied phycology as well as passed with honors in medical science before focusing your studies in nutrition and naturopathic medicine. You should know better than me, I suppose, when it comes to this sort of thing. I  _only_  receive my doctorates in-"

"Damn it Law, don't pull rank here." Leon rubbed the bridge of his nose, knowing that Law had more doctorates in more fields of medicine than he did. They hadn't gone to school for as long as they had to come out dunces. "I know what you have degrees-"

"Doctorates." Law corrected.

"- _Doctorates_  in. I merely am expressing that there is more than meets the eye on this one and since I  _did_  study phycology while  _you_  only  _read_  a few of my textbooks, I'm merely saying that you threatening to kill Oz  _and_  your  _lovely_  conversation last night have triggered elevated stress within Oz's already stressful life, thus making it difficult for even the  _likes_  of me to even make headway because he's so damn anxious about every damn thing."

"Thank you for the breakdown, but I want your suggestion on how to proceed, not your reason why he's so on edge. As long as he can be a valuable asset to our crew, I can care less about what makes him so anxious."  _Unless it gets to be a real issue_  was the unspoken clause that both knew he had left out purposely. Law liked pretending he didn't care because more often than not, he didn't. But Leon could tell that Law liked Oz well enough and would continue to learn to appreciate the young mechanic. If the kid were to join, he  _would_  end up caring. Leon guaranteed it.

"There are a few things that come to mind," Leon admitted, still very pissed at Law. "One of those is to, indeed, prey upon his desires to go to Grand Line, and, as Missus Pluie mentioned, allow him to set his own terms to joining."

"Hmm," Law was already planning on doing so, but working Oz's terms and conditions, whatever they might be, to his own advantage. "Next?"

"His phobia is the heart of all his insecurities and problems." Leon almost hated using this in their favor, but Law usually got what Law wanted. Sometimes he felt that he had not done Law any justice by giving in to all his petty desires. Now Law often expected to get what he wanted when it came to Leon, like keeping Bepo instead of insisting to put him back or at least give the cub to a zoo. But in this case, Leon wanted Oz with them just as much as Law might have, only for different reasons, his completely benign. "You may be able to sway his thoughts about joining if you make mention that there may be something I can do about treating his phobia and possibly his insomnia, his anxiety levels, along with any other issues he may wish to confess to me, and all without administering a harsh prescription. Holistic treatments, a few therapy sessions, a change of his environment, and his diet would probably work wonders for him."

"Wunderbar, ja." Law smiled sinisterly, it seemed that everything was falling together perfectly so that he could get what he wanted in the end of their stay on Roanoke Island. "Anything else, Leon?"

Leon looked at him with a rather conniving look, one that didn't surface all too often, only when he was with Law and thinking of something quite brilliant. "Oh, I have one or two ideas left to suggest."

Law smiled, glad that he had allowed Leon to leave and find the lad. He knew Leon had been worrying about the boy, especially since he realized Oz had snuck away without getting served breakfast by the overly motherly man, who usually would not allow  _any_  of them, regardless of work shifts, to skip any meals. He also had surmised that allowing Leon time alone with Oz would only strengthen his effort of trying to gain the young lad as a crew member, since Leon's nurturing and paternal instincts would flare up protectively towards Oz and all his troubles.

So far, everything was going according to his plans. Oz, if the boy was to keep to the deadline and manage to repair the submarine, would be his by the end of the week. One step closer to returning the Grand Line and one step closer to his ultimate goal.

* * *

Oz wanted nothing more than to flee. He had even tried. He had woken up in a warm bed, Teisei lying by his side, purring contently, and nearly freaked himself into another panic attack. That is, until he remembered that he had fallen asleep due to sheer exhaustion on Leon. After recalling that, he just wanted to die from embarrassment. The man had carried his heavy ass back to Bella Inn and no doubt this was  _his_  room that he was paying for. Oz was mortified by that point and attempted to save some face, or what little of his pride that was left, by sneaking out before either Leon or  _Law_  confronted him and did anything to strip him bare of the little pride he had left within himself.

Needless to say, his plan failed. Horribly. The moment he tried to slowly and quietly open the window and climb out, something that he was use to doing from time to time when he didn't want Tabitha knowing he had left his rented room, he was yanked back by the ever silent-footed Trafalgar Law.

"Good morning Oz-ya," Law cooed mockingly as he lowered his head to speak into one of the yellow eyed lad's ears. "I hope you slept well."

"Relatively." Oz gulped, feeling a shutter run down his spine at being caught trying to escape by  _this man_  of all men.

"I heard you had another panic attack," Law tsked at that, pulling Oz further back from the window before using his free hand to shut it. "That's not good at all. Leon wanted to make sure you were all and well before we released you back into the streets, ja."

"Nonsense," Oz tried to wave it off. "I have had panic attacks before. I am fine to be by myself afterwards. In fact, it is preferable to be by my lonesome after an episode to regain a feeling of control over myself." Oz wanted nothing more than to convince this man to  _leave him alone_. "I often meditate to relieve myself... so if you'd just..."

Law had him in a strong hold by then, one that caused Oz to be ramrod straight and rigid as Law's right hand rested firmly on the back of his neck. Yellow eyes flew over to where his cat lied, still purring as it watched with bored silver eyes as Law manhandled his owner. Teisei didn't even seem interested enough to aide him in his escape, like he usually did when the massive feline felt his charge was being threatened.

"Well,  _today_  is a little different, Oz-ya. You  _previously_  did not work under my employment, however temporary it currently is, and I will not tolerate having anyone who works for me not be checked out after such an event." The dark doctor said in his deep, husky voice. Oz didn't need to see the pirate captain to know that he had one of those wicked smirks upon his lips or the sinister look in his eyes. His imagination was doing a fine job of matching his tone of voice to a familiar facial expression had seen on the doctor captain before.

"I assure you, I do not need you to inspect me for lingering side effects of my disposition. Or rather, I  _do not want_  to be inspected by a man like yourself, Mister Trafalgar." Oz finally admitted, swallowing hard.

"Hmmm? You do not wish to be inspected by me?" Oz couldn't help but allow himself to be lead out the door, despite his wish to flee. Law's grip on his neck was too strong to break and he could only concede to going where Law wished.

"Perhaps it is lucky for you that I figured you'd not wish for me to be your personal physician today." Law said lowly, only Oz could probably hear. " _But,_  you are getting checked out, regardless of if it is me someone else that  _I_  trust, ja."

Oh gods, he had  _another_  doctor on his ship?  _Who?_  Trafalgar Law did not seem to be the man who would concede to having a 'second opinion' on his ship. Well, unless it was from-

"I see that Mister Oz is awake and petrified of you as usual." Leon's voice broke through Oz's thoughts and the lad's eyes swiftly focused on the only other person up in the room Law had taken him to.

"I do believe you remember my first mate, Grimmhart Leon, ja?" Law teased, releasing his death hold on Oz and pushed him further into the room.

Leon was sitting comfortably in a chair, reclining as he sat across from an empty chair. Oz had a feeling it was for him.

"First mate?" Oz was so confused. "I thought that he was your ship's cook."

"I am." Leon laughed as he motioned Oz to come in, "as well as the first mate and a doctor. Law specializes in surgery and medicine  _mainly_. I think his bedside manners are lacking and cover his ass when it comes to things outside his aptitude, like phycological trauma and such."

"At least my fields of expertise is not mainly a bunch of foolish nonsense. All of what _I_  studied is actually considered practical among other doctors, unlike your fields of expertise." Law scoffed as he began to head out the door, apparently his role in this whole thing was completed.

"Say what you want, but results are results, Law."

"Then I expect to  _see_  results, Leon." With that, the dark doctor sauntered out the door, shutting it behind him and ending the conversation before Leon could add anything more.

"Asshole," Leon scoffed under his breath before looking over at Oz. "Well, don't just stand, take a seat, please."

Oz shook his head, not too keen on the idea of the 'check up' regardless of if it was Leon instead of Law doing the checking. He was quickly locating where he was in the room and the fastest route to the nearest exit. He wondered fleetingly how fast Leon was and if he would be able to run past Law if he used the room door to flee.

"Whatever Law told you, I assure you, is not the truth." Leon cut into his internal plotting with those words.

"He said you were here to give me a check up." Oz was still tense waiting for the confirmation words to come from Leon's mouth.

"You had a panic attack, not much to check up on except your vitals. I mainly want to talk a bit about your usual symptoms before, during, and after an attack and plan ways to minimize the triggers to your episodes." Leon explained calmly, trying to soothe his untrusting patient's nerves.

"I am fine." Oz asserted, taking a few steps back. "I don't want your-"

"I know why you are hesitant to trust me." Leon suddenly interrupted, causing Oz to freeze painfully in his spot. "I can understand your need to keep everyone at a distance and your constant fear of eyes upon you."

"You... you... know?" Oz swallowed hard, his legs trembling underneath him. This man, of all men,  _knew_  his secret. "H-how?"

" _Mister Oz_ ," Leon looked at him with a confident but caring look, one completely different than the taunting look Law would have given him. "Any information shared with me in our doctor-patient relationship is completely confidential, I assure you."

Canary yellow eyes narrowed as Oz's temper overrode his fear. "Please excuse my suspicion, but I don't  _trust_  doctors merely because they say they can be trusted. I don't trust  _anyone_  merely because they insist upon their trustworthiness, Mister Leon."

Leon's storm grey eyes, ones nearly identical in coloring to his captain's, stared calmly into young Oz's vibrant yellow eyes with a gentle, kind look. "Then, allow me the chance to gain your trust. I promise: anything we talk about privately that is strictly confidential and will never reach anyone's, including Law's, eyes or ears."

Oz was still suspicious, but found himself slowly coming closer to the open chair. "How can I trust you won't tell Mister Trafalgar? He is your captain after all."

"You can  _especially_  trust that anything said in confidentiality will not reach his ears, my dear," Leon laughed, leaning back further into his chair. "If only because I love pissing him off when I can. He hates being left in the dark and that's  _exactly_  what I intend to do."

Leon watched as Oz internally waged war with conflicting emotions. The other obviously wanted to trust him, but, at the same time, years of distrust towards strangers and all the secrets and fear surround those secrets made it hard for Oz to relent to even accepting his help, regardless of if he may have accidentally uncovered a secret or two about the mysterious boy. He couldn't help but smile when the lad slowly pulled himself into the seat, and, with shaking hands, looked at Leon with a nervous, but determined look.

"Well, where would you like to start, Mister Leon?"

"Allow me to take your vitals, just to make sure you've completely recovered from your panic attack, then we'll talk about some countermeasures that can possible assist in decreasing your anxiety and eradicating your episodes all together." Leon began, leaning forward a bit and tapping his fingertips together as he waited for Oz to agree.

Oz nodded, still feeling the urge to flee, but shoved it back. If he was to survive or even  _get_ to the Grand Line, he needed to be able to push past his fear and anxieties. He knew there was no way he could accomplish his mother's final wishes the way he was right now. Right now, he was a paranoid mess and it was the sad truth he had accepted a long time ago. He only trusted himself and his cat fully, without waver. With everyone else, he was merely waiting for the moment they stabbed him (proverbially) in the back, even the Bella women as much as he hated to admit it.

He needed to change. He had to. Not only to survive, but for something more. What, he did not know, but his instincts were telling him that it was the right thing to do.

And so with one last nervous breath, he allowed Leon to begin helping him.

* * *

"What a surprise, ja." Oz tried hard to ignore the taunting tone of the Heart Captain as he remained seated. After a very grueling session, to him anyway, with Leon, he didn't truly feel like interacting much with Trafalgar Law. It was somewhat hard when said man took a seat right next to his and practically invaded his personal space. "It seems Oz-ya deigns to join us for breakfast this morning when only yesterday he vanished before we could even cordially invite him."

"Leave him alone Law. I insisted upon him eating with us before allowing him to make a break for it." Leon scolded the younger man, his attention only flickering for a moment from the food he was cooking.

Law frowned, but for the moment relented, especially when Teisei came trotting into the room and took the seat next to Law. Oz glared angrily at his cat, hissing the word 'traitor' to the black cat as the cat looked rather pleased by his choice in seating, Law was already petting him the way he liked with his hand with the letters 'D.E.A.T.H' tattooed onto his fingers. Oz found it fitting, in a sick and ironic way, that those two seemed to have hit it off only after one night.

"Jealous?" Those dark grey eyes were on him again.

"More like disgusted. You don't know where he's been." Oz grumbled under his breath, refusing to look at either of them.

"If his cleanliness was an issue with you, I very much doubt you'd allow him to sleep next to you." Law pointed out in his usual tone.

Canary yellow eyes clashed with storm grey eyes as Oz let out a snort. "I wasn't  _talking_  to you, Mister Trafalgar, but to Teisei, thank you."

Law frowned deeply, no longer amused as suddenly he found both Leon and the cat sniggering at the young Oz's sassy words. He was about to say something when he was interrupted by a hand placed on Oz's shoulder and both of them jolted, looking up to see Elias. He too wore a frown upon his lips as his ocher colored eyes stared down at Oz.

"As much as I hate to  _inconvenience_  you. That infernal creature you profess to be a cat is sitting in my usual spot and since I would rather  _die_  than get cat fur on my clothes. You will simply have to be the one that moves so I may sit next to Captain." His eyes then flashed over to Law. "He and I have some  _things_  we must discuss about our ship's current budget before breakfast." He glanced back to Oz, removing his hand so he could, quiet snobbishly, shoo Oz away with a flick of his wrist. "So, shoo, go sit elsewhere. I would suggest over there, that's where those hooligan mechanics usually sit and no doubt they would be  _ecstatic_  to have you sit your dirty, grease-stained self over there with them and their filth."

Oz stared at him a moment, unsure of if this man was truly being serious, but Elias's serious and irritable look never wavered. Oz quickly sent a questioning look at Leon, who was smiling mirthfully as he shook his head, before fully understanding what was going on. Looking back at Elias, he caught the man sending him a quick wink and quirk of the lips upwards, letting him know everything was going to be fine, before looking utterly grumpy once more.

"I am  _so_  sorry, Mister Elias." Oz tried not to laugh as he stole a glance at Law's irritated glare that he was sending Elias's way. "I didn't realize you had a seating arrangement. And I am really sorry about Teisei." No he wasn't, but what the hell? "He's a menace and probably knew that was your seat and took is merely to vex you, so please, do take mine. I'll find a spot near the area  _you_  suggested." And far,  _far_  away from Trafalgar Law.

" _Good_. And do not forget your place,  _plebeian_." Elias scoffed, sitting in the spot the moment Oz evacuated it and expertly blocking Law from getting up to follow. "And  _you_. I have a few  _long-winded_  inquiries about some of the documents you submitted to me for a few of your proposals. It looks like you may have  _misfiled_  a few things."

Law watched unhappily as Oz made his escape before turning his frustrated gaze back at Elias, who didn't even bat an eye at his attitude and sat down with a  _large_  stack of paperwork to 'go over'. The dark doctor looked at the stack, then to Elias and then to Leon, his eyes narrowing as he came to his own conclusions.

"Am I to assume that you two are working  _against_  me? This could be considered mutiny, ja." Law warned.

"Or," Elias said in a mockingly chipper tone, his eyes giving away his true irritation. "You may consider this payback for the cadaver incident. I scrubbed my skin raw because of your  _innocent_  little prank to even feel  _remotely_  clean after my run in with one of your... puppets."

The two glared at each other for a moment before Law sighed, relenting to his fate as he crossed his arms and slumped down a bit. Elias reached for the first page and began his  _long-winded_ review of Law's documents, a smug grin adorning Elias's lips as he spoke.

As those two soon became oblivious to the rest of the world around them, Oz was able to slowly understand the inner workings of the crew. Elias and Leon were two people that had some liberty in the way they interacted with Law, though Elias had a much more limited amount of Law's tolerance while Leon had a currently immeasurable amount. The two were also, next to their insomnia plagued captain, the earliest of risers. It wasn't even 6:00 in the morning yet and both Leon and Elias were obviously showered, shaved, dressed, and already prepared to start the day.

He and Law were the two that were awake only because of the fact that they  _couldn't_  seem to sleep too well, regardless of his irregular decent night's sleep that Oz had just had, due to his exhaustion. While he had already groomed himself, including shaving his head as he did every morning, it was obvious that Law had yet to shower, shave, or change his clothes. His rumpled clothing was no doubt the same clothes he had worn the day previous, not that Oz could really talk, since he was still wearing what he had worn the night before and had yet showered despite his personal grooming habits.

The next person up, surprisingly, was Basil and he was instantly in the kitchen with Leon cleaning up the dishes in the sink and Leon continued to focus on cooking. He would talk to Basil ever now and then, instructing Basil on the proper techniques to preparing a dish. He watched with great enthusiasm and would mentally take notes as he watched and worked without saying much. He was obviously soft-spoken and easily taken advantage of, which is why he was kept under Leon's wing. The man would not allow anyone to bully Basil as long as he was present.

Ignaas was the next person to make his appearance, alongside Orpheus and not Oddmund. He gave a tired yawn as he stretched his arms above his head while Orpheus expertly dodged the appendages while still glancing over a thick booklet. Both had their hair all styled, Orpheus had his brown hair slicked back into a control hairstyle while Ignaas had the most intricate hair style, his wine colored hair styled into a pompadour. He wore a bandana around his forehead and a pair of dark work goggles over the black bandana. He looked around groggily, unable to process much more than where the bar table separating the kitchen was and leaning against it.

"Coffee..." He whined, banging an open palm against the bar table.

"Tch," Leon didn't look all too pleased by the request. "Do you know how  _bad_  coffee is for you? Caffeine in general is like a horrible legal drug that your body gets addicted to and craves it to function correctly."

"I don't care. Coffee, damnit." Ignaas grumbled, pointing to Law. "Captain hasn't forbidden coffee as of yet, so don't be a miser with it,  _Leon,_  merely because you don't like the stuff and are capable of functioning in the morning without it _._ "

"I can because I don't-"

"Don't care! Coffee!" Ignaas cut him off grouchily, banging his fist against the table. "Why is it I have to fight you for it  _every damn morning_. I can smell it. You already made it, so  _give it to me already!_ "

"Give it to him, Leon." Law's voice cut in, ending the small fight between the two men with his final say so.

"Tch," Leon was frowning as he went to where he had the coffee pot set up. He grumbled lowly, but Oz was still able to catch what the dark skinned man said. "How is it, he can style his hair like that without any coffee, but can't even tie his own shoe without the stuff?"

"A cup for me as well, if you do not mind." Orpheus was suddenly at the bar, still looking at the page he was studying.

Leon, who was now at the bar counter and handing Ignaas his cup, looked ready to say something, but Basil managed to speak before an argument could break out once more over the caffeinated substance. "I'll get it for you, brother~!"

Ah, Oz suddenly understood why both men were so similar in appearance and demeanor. Basil was obviously the younger one, shy and eager to please. Orpheus was slightly older, more confident in his tasks, but not one to say more than a few words, it seemed. He also seemed like he was quite cunning, waiting for Ingaas to fight it out with Leon and getting the man to relent before he even placed his request for the same beverage.

"Finally!" Ingaas cried as he quickly took his cup and downed half of it before holding it out. "Top me off and I'll be out of your hair without another word."

Leon looked ready to growl, but he turned and got the coffee pot, which was handed to him by Basil. The brunette had finished filling up the cup for his brother and was able to hand the pot to Leon before delivering the cup he had prepared to his brother. Leon, without a smile, poured more coffee into Ignaas's cup, filling it up. Orpheus had received his around the same time and with a quiet thank you to his younger brother, went to sit at the table.

"Thank you very much!" Ignaas beamed happily, now that he had gotten his way.

"You said you'd leave without another word. Go. Sit. Drink your vile beverage and suffer being dependent upon it for the remainder of your miserable life." Leon huffed, waiving him off, but couldn't help the small smirk that quirked unwillingly on his lips.

"I will~!" Ignaas laughed, turning on his heel and heading towards the table, more amiable and light-hearted now that he had some caffeine in his system. He paused as his eyes landed on Oz's pudgy form sitting near where he usually perched for breakfast.

His expression lit up instantly, "Well, if it isn't Oz, Shachi and Penguin can't talk about you enough! I swear, it's like every other word is your name!"

Oz waved slightly as he slowly slumped into his seat, his face flushing from embarrassment at how much the two other mechanics seemed to speak about him. Ignaas ignored the behavior as he lifted his cup and jerked his head back to where Leon was cooking.

"Want coffee? I'll get you some if you'd like. Leon's a  _huge_  health nut and thinks that coffee's the bane of human existence, but I know how to work him into submission."

"Tea's fine..." Oz shook his head. "I've never taken to the taste of coffee."

"Ah, be a man, it'll grow some hair on your chest." Ignaas shot back, a teasing smirk on his face as he pounded on his own chest.

"Because you are a  _perfect_  example." Elias interrupted, rolling his eyes. "I've had the displeasure of seeing you without a shirt. There's not one over grown hair on the entirety of your torso, thank the gods, because the last thing we need are a bunch of smelly, hairy men on our submarine. We have Bepo and he's more than enough in that respect when the submarine overheats."

"Excuse me..." The words caused everyone to glance over at the doorway where Bepo was hanging his head low and apologizing.

"So sensitive..." Oz could hear some of them mutter while Leon shot Elias a warning look about talking like such in front of the talking polar bear.

"Ignore Elias's comments, Bepo. He's merely grumpy that he has yet been offered coffee." Law told his navigator, never once looking away from the document he was reviewing, now seeing that there were a few mistakes on the papers and it wasn't completely made up.

"Yes Captain." Bepo recovered from the comment and moved to sit near Law. Teisei hopping out of the seat so Bepo could take it before hopping onto the bear's lap.

Ignaas laughed as he turned and retrieved another cup of coffee, Oz almost dreading it was for him, but was relieved when Ignaas set it next to Elias. He made no motion of gratitude towards Ingaas for his actions, but took the cup and sipped it shortly after Ignaas walked by and sat next to Oz.

"I don't believe we have ever properly met! I'm Ignaas, by the by," the mechanic said, giving Oz a brilliant, friendly smile. "But most of the other mechanics on the Persephone call my Iggy. I prefer it better. Ignaas is what my father called me when I was in trouble and right before he beat the shit out of me for doing stupid stuff."

"Like the time we tried to figure out the boiling point of gasoline in your basement when we were ten?" Oz's focus was suddenly placed on the doorway where Oddmund was stood, stretching and yawning as he tried to better wake up. His orange blonde hair was mostly covered up by the light purple beanie he wore over his head, only his sideburns could be seen with the brilliant hair color.

"Hey, we got that fire out pretty fast and nothing was damaged at all. Besides, be learned that its the fumes that are flammable and that if we had covered the damn beaker properly, we could have figured it out. In fact, I still say we could have gotten away with it..."

"Sure," Oddmund snorted, "we could have  _possibly_  gotten away with that mistake if we hadn't been in the basement, there had been no smoke to indicate there  _had_  been a fire,  _and_ , my personal favorite factor, your parents had not been home. Sure, we might have gotten away without being whipped otherwise."

Ignaas pouted a bit, but leaned in towards Oz. "Odd is still a little bitter about that one. Probably cause he got sent home and then  _his_  daddy whipped him too."

"No, worse," Oddmund laughed. "My  _mother_  beat me. My pa was a pussy compared to that woman. She had a temper that sent  _him_  running for the hills."

"What, are you two talking about your misadventures as young boys  _again_?" Penguin whined as he tried to push past Oddmund, who wasn't budging an inch.

"Who  _hasn't_  heard about how stupid you two were as boys?" Shachi groused. He too trying to now push past Oddmund, who was now purposely keeping the two head mechanics from getting past him, laughing as he messed with his higher ups.

"And how stupider they are as men?" Elias couldn't help but add his two cents in.

"The only idiot I know is the man who gambles with dangerous men and cheats them out of all their money." Oddmund huffed, finally moving and both Shachi and Penguin lost their footing and crashing onto one another when the object upon what they were pushing suddenly moved.

"Well," Elias looked irritated as he looked away from his papers to look at Oddmund. "It is a good thing I cheated no one out of their money. I won it all fair and square."

"Still makes you an idiot." Ignaas pipped in before taking a sip of his coffee, most of others laughing at his words, even Law and Orpheus were chuckling under their breaths, though the latter hid it well behind his coffee mug. Even Oz could not help but chuckle under his breath, much like Basil was doing as he pretended to be busy with the dishes, these men's pace was easy to be caught up in without noticing.

"Tch," Elias clicked his tongue as he grumpily went back to his work. He couldn't really argue with their logic. He had truly known better, but had taken a poor gamble when he had played cards with those men.

As Shachi and Penguin slowly got up from where Oddmund had let them crash, the finally noticed the extra person in the room. "Oz!"

Oz found himself unsure of what to do when the two men smiled at him, greeting him cheerfully. "You tutoring Miss Notte again this morning?" Penguin started.

"Or are you actually here to join us for breakfast this time?" Shachi continued where he left off.

"'Cause Leon's not going to have you disappearing this time."

"He nearly had a fit last time, especially when we came back and realized we had forgotten about eating our lunch, meaning you probably hadn't eaten all day."

"Yeah, I'm surprised he didn't hunt you down last night to make sure you at least ate dinner."

"I was super surprised since we  _might_  have mentioned you would probably be sleeping in the forest since Miss Soleil mentioned that your landlady still had her company over."

Ah, so  _that's_  how he knew where to find him. Oz did his best not to look at the two with an accusatory glare. After all, they  _didn't_  know he suffered from frequent panic attacks and Leon's charismatic presence had set him off so shortly after his last one (compliments of their captain).

"You sure seem to know your cook very well..." Oz forced out a weak few laughs. It was obviously a nervous, fake laugh, but he often caught himself doing such at times where he had no idea how else he should respond.

The mechanics all stared at him for a moment in a deadpan, making him shift uncomfortably under their stares, before Shachi and Penguin began grinning.

"Pay up!" They chanted together as the both of them held out their one of their hands, Shachi towards Oddmund and Penguin towards Ignass, as they continued to grin triumphantly.

"Damn it!" Ignaas howled as he shifted in his seat to pull out his wallet.

"I was sure we'd win that one." Oddmund pouted as he did the same.

Oz could not believe his eyes as he realized there had been some sort of  _betting pool_  between the mechanic on whether or not Leon would go after Oz to make sure he was fed. He glanced his wide eyes at Leon, but the man was just shaking his head in his quiet displeasure of being the source of their gambling as he continued to cook. In the corner of his eye, he could see Law smirking widely despite how he was still going through the paperwork with Elias.

Yup, this crew was definitely something else. But a part of Oz couldn't help be like that fact about the Heart Pirates. It was almost enchanting to him, to watch them interact together. Even with a sadistic, creepy man as their captain, Oz almost wished he could be a part of something so close and unified. They were all like parts to a machine. Individually unique, each with a distinct personality and role, but unable to accomplish anything of real purpose until they all came together as one working unit.

However, he cleared his head of such a ridiculous notion. He was only there because they had hired his shipyard to repair their submarine. A spare part within their unit that would easily be removed with no consequence to their normal function. Nothing more, nothing less. Once he had accomplished his task, they would be on their way and his life would go back to how it had been before.

So, despite how much he enjoyed watching the lot of them tease and talk to one another during breakfast, he kept himself as distant as he could. He could  _not_  grow attached to these men. He could  _not_  allow himself to yearn for what he knew he could not  _have_. He  _had_  what he needed for now. He  _had_  to be content with it.

He  _had_  to...

But secretly, Oz knew that he  _wasn't_  and  _wouldn't_  be content. He was a free bird trapped on an island by his insecurities and fears. He needed to break free of this cage he had placed himself in by his overwhelming anxieties, and spread his wings and travel the open sea once more.

But he  _couldn't_  join this crew. Even  _if_  they  _possibly_  asked a person like him...

Breakfast could not end quickly enough for him to make his escape. Because, deep, deep,  _deep_  down, he desperately wanted  _not_  to be a spare part in this particular unit. Creepy pirate captain and all.

* * *

He had finally figured it out. With  _one_  day to spare, the lad had figured out what was wrong with the submarine and was now working on making the new piece to replace the damaged part. It hadn't been Oz  _alone_. Heavens no. By that time, all four pirate mechanics were in the submarine alongside him trying to help him get it done in time to make his deadline, since it was an  _actual_   _dead_ line for him if he  _failed_  to accomplish his task and all. However, he had been the one to figure out why the engine wouldn't rev to life and it was him who was putting together the new part while the rest of the men left for the day.

It was well after closing time, but Boss had allowed him to stay since it was  _his_  life that was on the line if he didn't get the vessel working by tomorrow night. He was more than content to put in overtime alone at the shipyard into the night over having to put up with Trafalgar Law and his shit. Despite how much Oz enjoyed the other men of the Persephone. Their captain had yet leave him  _alone_  since day  _one_. He was vastly interested in him, despite how  _boring_  Oz tried to make himself seem. And he had  _tried_. Well, he started  _after_  letting it slip he was raised by monks and was extremely intelligent. Also, the man had seen his drawings and knew how artistically inclined he was too. Damn it, that first night really had ruined him on the 'boring' angle.

The pirate captain had decided that, if Oz was to be working on his submarine, then he was expected to follow his commands as well, including that he  _had_  to eat with them at breakfast and at dinner (a lunch box was provided to him and the other mechanics on top of that). Then he even had to gall to order him to stay at the Bella Inn, which he promptly said _no_  to. Tabitha's man was long gone by then and he had no inclination to waste anymore of his rent money  _not_  staying in the room he  _rented_. Though Law relented to  _that_ ,  _Leon_  had decided to add his  _own_  stipulations, including a few more  _therapy_  sessions with him early morning before Oz tutored the Bella sisters early morning.

Oz was more than ready for this week to end and for Trafalgar Law to be out of his life. He was tired of the man's constant antagonizing and prodding and he was exhausted from all his near panic attacks that had been occurring throughout the man's unwanted company. As much as he liked Penguin, Shachi, Odd, Iggy, Leon, Basil, Orpheus, Bepo and, hell, even grumpy Elias, he could not  _stand_  Law.  _At all_.

There was something about the man, past that creepy, sarcastic, and sadistic personality of his, that didn't sit right with him. Call it intuition, call it paranoia, but there was something about Law that vastly unsettled the young mechanic. It was like he was consumed by an unabated, unquenched  _fury_  hidden behind those polite smiles, nonchalant appearances, irritatingly sardonic or facetious remarks of his, and cocky attitude. He was damaged far more than anyone gave credit to and he was just a bomb waiting to detonate at any given moment.

Leon  _might_  know how badly the pirate captain was damaged, but, if he did, he was already doing everything in his power to keep the man together. Even so, it wasn't a one man job and something would eventually slip out of his control. Oz didn't want to be there were Law finally exploded. It was not going to be pretty, the kid knew that much in the short time he had known the dark doctor.

"Rushing to meet the deadline, are we, Oz-ya?" The husky, low voice of the pirate captain sounded from behind him.

Oz wished he would stop thinking so much about the man. Maybe if he didn't  _think_  about Trafalgar Law so much, said man would not keep magically appearing like Oz had summoned him by his  _thoughts_  alone.

"Oh  _shit_!" Despite recognizing the voice, Oz automatically responded to his startle by attempting to flee in fright, but Law easily grabbed ahold of the lad's shoulders and kept him in place.

"Did I frighten you?" Law was already placing his fingers over Oz's pulse to make sure he wasn't about to go into a panic attack. It wouldn't do for the chubby mechanic to suffer one so close to being done  _fixing_  his submarine.

"How the hell did you get  _in_  here? The shipyard has been locked up for the night."  _And I'm_ ** _positive_** _I locked the door when I came in here._ Oz left that part unsaid. His heart was hammering in his chest, but he wasn't about to have another panic attack. He had been spooked enough times this week to grow  _slightly_  immune to Law's jump scares. The man moved as if his steps were on permanent mute. Damn man put assassins to shame.

"I have my ways." Law shrugged off cryptically as he removed his fingers, confident that his temporary employee wouldn't go into an attack. "So, my mechanics tell me that you have solved the issue, ja."

"Mostly." Oz corrected as he began to fiddle with the part he was making to repair the damaged one. "I figured out what component had been wreaked in your run in with that Sea King. A rather important gear had been dislodged and disfigured during the attack and unfortunately, with it being misaligned and so badly mutilated, it couldn't complete its function, leaving your submarine dead in the water. I am making a new gear to replace it, but isn't it amazing how a whole engine can malfunction simply because of one, tiny gear not in the right place?"

"And how, with every component in its place, everything runs smoothly." Law added as he took a seat next to the young mechanic. "The body works similarly to that of a well oiled machine, in my opinion."

"Perhaps, but I think that the body offers more leeway than a machine does. I mean, this simple gear caused the whole ship to stop functioning properly. The body might take on damage, but it can  _heal_  itself and it can  _persevere_  past its limits when the situation demands it."

"Ja, however, machines can always be repaired even after being heavily destroyed; bodies cannot. Once truly dead, there is no way to resuscitate a human body back to life apart from specific, rare devil fruits. Machines, though, can be in disrepair for decades and be brought back to life with just the right parts replaced or repaired." Law added on to Oz's observation. He gave him a bored expression as he rolled his eyes a bit at the 'obviousness' of the lad's comment. "I  _understand_  that machines and living substance have their differences but also have  _similarities_. For example, everything within the human body is needed to function properly. We can do  _without_  some organs, but we function  _best_  with all of our given parts. We have no spare parts. Just as a machine like my sub has no spare parts within its mechanism, ja. Every piece has its purpose."

"I suppose you are correct in that statement." Oz nodded as he continued to work on the gear. He was giving it shape by using their jigsaw saw that was designed to cut through thick sheets of metal. "Though I hate asking this, since you seem to be behaving rather civilly towards me for a change... Is there a point to this oddly specific parallel or are you merely trying to find a reason to preoccupy me and detain me from finishing  _on_   _time_ so you may kill me as you have  _promised_  to do if I fail."

"There is a reason, Oz-ya." Law answered, a smug look crossing his features as he continued. "Join my crew, ja."

Oz nearly broke the new gear he was cutting as well as almost taking off a few digits from his dominate hand at that. He spun around to look at the man, eyes wide as he opened and shut his jaw several times as he fought to find the words to  _say_  to such a unexpected, sudden request.

"Of course, I understand your setbacks and your fears, so I am more than willing to negotiate the terms to hiring you on as a part of my-"

"No." Oz cut him off with his response.

That smug smile on Law's face was instantly replaced by a dark frown. "No? What do you mean ' _no_ '."

"I mean  _no_.  _No_ , I will not join your crew." Oz responded in a stern tone as he stiffly went back to cutting the gear. His movements were rigid and graceless compared to before, however.

"You haven't even fully heard out my offer, ja. Isn't that a bit unwise to do, Oz-ya?"

"Not if I have no inclination to  _join_  your crew, it isn't." Oz gave up cutting until he had managed to get the pirate captain to leave. It would be dangerous for him to use the saw with how edgy this subject was.

"But you'd have full access to Leon. He has merely started treating you for your scopophobia-"

"I've learned enough about the subject to supplement for his absence hereafter." Oz retorted in a clipped tone.

Law's eyes narrowed and Oz knew he was pissing him off by cutting him off, but he didn't care. He had already decided that he could not join this crew. No. He had  _always_  known he could not join this crew, regardless of if Leon had discovered his secret. Even though there was a part within him that cried out to accept Law's offer, he knew he couldn't.

"What about your ambition?" Of  _course_  he'd go there.

"To go to the Grand Line?" Oz gave a bitter laugh at that. "We all know that's nothing more than a pipe dream. I'm a weakling and a coward. I have no right to go somewhere for only the brave and the strong. I'm merely practical enough to see it how it truly is and give up before I get myself killed."

"As a part of my crew,  _I'd_  offer you protection." Law offered, causing Oz to want to roll his eyes. The man was clearly powerful, that much he could sense, but enough to take on both sides of Grand Line? Oz had a hard time believing that.

"The protection of a man whose yet to prove his strength. That's reassuring." Oz snorted at his words. He continued talking before Law was able to get in a word, though the frown on his face told the mechanic that he was  _not_  pleased by that barb. "Regardless of how strong you are, I would not join your crew. You are  _dangerous_ and _volatile_."

"Didn't you just get done telling me I'm  _weak_? And now your saying I'm  _dangerous_? Which is it, Oz-ya." Law's temper had spiked at the insult. "Choose your next words  _wisely_  or you won't have to worry about having to make deadline. I kill you here and now."

Oz realized the man had issues about the subject. Weakness was not an option for the dark doctor for some reason and any implication towards him being such was not taken kindly. The lad was careful not to insinuate such things about the Heart captain again.

"I didn't call you  _weak_ , but there is a saying the monks use to recite to me: 'simply because a fish is big in a little pond does not make it so within the ocean'. You may be powerful among the natives of North Blue, but that does not mean you measure up to the powerhouses of the Grand Line. I can tell you are stronger than most, but does that make you stronger than all?" Oz looked at Law with a hint of curiosity. Would this abate his temper or fuel it further?

"And what makes me so dangerous and volatile that you will not join my crew?" His temper was abated, though that frown was still on his face.

"I think you know the answer to that, Mister Trafalgar." Oz side stepped the answer, knowing that it'd lead to unpleasant things. Things Oz did not want to get involved in.

"Ja, I do." Oz was relieved that Law didn't want to talk about it either, but understood where the lad's concerns truly were.

"Well now, since you have heard my formal decline to your job offer, would you be so kind as to leave me to finish my work? I have a deadline to make if I am to keep my life, which, needless to say, I'm rather keen on keeping."

Law had risen from his seat so fast that Oz hadn't been able to react in time before his long fingers wrapped around his neck and the man's mouth was by his ear, growling his departing words. "Be finished with the repairs by tomorrow  _morning_ , or I'll cut you down where you stand."

As quickly as he had assailed Oz, he was out the door, Oz's hands shook harshly as he forced himself to breathe. It took him thirty minutes before he could use the saw without worry of ruining his work or slicing off his fingers with how badly his hands shook. Even then, there was a mass of anxiety sitting in the pit of his stomach that he knew would not leave until this submarine had away from Roanoke Island's horizons.

Because Law was not use to being told 'no' and he doubted this would be the last attempt the man made to coerce him into joining his crew. He was a man who was determined to get what he wanted and would plot and plan until he succeeded. He'd think of  _something_ by the time Oz's deadline rolled around. Regardless of Law's motives being made clear and the anxiety that came with it, Oz had a quickly approaching deadline to meet. One that had grown even shorter since he had successfully pissed off the dark doctor in charge of his time limit.

Oz sighed as he finally got back to work. It was going to be a  _long,_  stressful night.

It was a good thing he didn't think he'd be able to sleep tonight, even if he wanted to.

* * *

It was three in the morning when Oz had finally finished the repairs. He knew Boss would be pissed at the amount of overtime he had put in that night, but, other than forfeit his life, what was he suppose to do? He had completed replicated the gear and had gone into the empty submarine sometime around midnight to install it. By now, Oz was well versed enough in how the engine worked that he was able to easily install the new piece by himself and run a few tests to make sure that it was working properly.

After about twelve separate tests and configurations, he was certain that everything was in perfect working order and allowed himself a sigh of relief as he slowly slumped to the ground with his back against one of the walls within the engine room. Though he had been certain he wouldn't be able to sleep anytime soon, exhaustion poured into his bones the moment he realized his life was safe. He had fulfilled his end of the bargain and now Law had no reason to kill him.

His eyes slid shut and he decided that it wouldn't hurt to take a short nap. He was a light sleeper anyways, so he'd awaken at the first signs of people coming into the engine room to start up the submarine. He just needed some sleep.

To him, it felt like he had only dozed off moments ago when the engine revved to life, startling the yellow eyed lad into jumping into a defensive position. He looked around confused when he didn't even see anyone within the engine room and swore violently at himself when his mind suddenly recalled that the blueprints had indicated that the engine could be activated remotely from within the bridge of the submarine.

He made a mad dash for deck, running as fast as his legs would carry him, but the engine room was located within the belly of the beast, allowing no fast or direct route to the upper most level where to door to the deck was installed. He had only gotten to the second level when the red warning lights began to flash, indicating that the vessel was starting to submerge into the depths of the ocean. Oz nearly had a panic attack right then and there at the thought of being  _stuck_  on this submarine where he  _couldn't_  get out. He was about to be surrounded by ocean water at all angles and suddenly, he didn't like the idea of submarines and what their technology meant for humanity anymore.

He stopped running and fell to his knees, hyperventilating when he manage to make it to the first level and caught glimpse of the ocean water already engulfing the port windows. That was it. He was  _stuck_. He was stuck here while everything he owned was still on the island. His sketchbooks, his books, his clothes, his money, his _cat_! All of it was still there and now forever  _lost_  to him. It made breathing all the much harder to accomplish.

"Better add claustrophobia to that list, Leon." Oz heard the very familiar voice of that bastard pirate captain.

"Y- _you_." He managed to gasp accusingly, though it wasn't as venomous as he wished it could be since he could barely keep himself from having a meltdown right there. However, Oz was pretty sure that if looks could kill, that glower he had sent Law's way would have killed him in an instant.

"Congratulation on successfully accomplishing your task, Mister Oz." Law had that smug smirk on his lips as he antagonized the young mechanic. "It would seem as though you get to keep your life  _after_ all."

"You... you..." Oz stuttered between gasps. He couldn't breath right. "You... ab... abducting..."

"I'm abducting?" Law's smirk blossomed into a sinister grin as he leaned down to be more at eye level with the lad half collapsed upon his submarine floor. "Oh, you think I'm abducting you because you refused to willing join my crew, ja."

Oz nodded. Everything was getting dizzy and though he could see Leon looking at him with great distress from the corner of his eye, he could also catch glimpse of Law's hand signaling Leon to stay where he was.

"Now Oz-ya," the dark doctor tsked at him mockingly. "Think of it not so much of  _abducting_  as it is a passing whim to leave with you still on board."

"Bull... shit..." Darkness was beginning to encircle Oz's vision as he fought a losing battle to regain his breath. He was hyperventilating too hard now and he would soon pass out from lack of oxygen at this rate.

"It is every bit the truth, Oz- _ya_." Law chuckled darkly as he grabbed Oz's jaw. "However, since this ship will not support idle hands, you'll have to work for your keep until we get to the next island. If you decide to jump ship then, so be it. If you decide otherwise, you and I will discuss the terms of your employment. Until then it seems you are a honorary member of this crew and will be treated as such." He began to stand back up to his full height as he stared at the man next to him. "Leon, if you would see to Oz-ya's condition, I will be taking the first shift at the helm."

Leon gave his captain a disapproving look, one that promised a lecture sometime in the near future, but said nothing as he instantly got down on his knees to start helping his patient with his panic attack. Law merely chuckled as he made his way down the hall, pleased with how things had panned out. Oz would be his. He was simply too stubborn to see that he was a valuable asset to Law's dream in reaching the Grand Line and exacting his revenge.

How often did one come across a young, self-taught mechanical genius?

As often as one came across a young medical genius as talented as he was.

Hardly  _ever_.

And Law, being the opportunist that he was, knew that if he let the young genius slip through his fingers, then it would only be a matter of time before someone else either snagged him up or he ended up more traumatized than he already was or even dead. At least with Law, he had the option of seeking phycological help from Leon for any mental damage Law might inflict unintentionally (or completely intentional) in his interactions with Oz.

Yes, he had many plans for Oz, but it all really started with convincing him to join his crew on a permanent level, which he already knew was not going to be easy. It was a good thing he was such a patient man.


	4. Drawing Lines

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece, just my plotline and Ocs

Now, Law and Leon had known each other for a fairly long time at this point. He had met the older man shortly after the loss of his dear mentor and guardian. In fact, the closest thing Law  _had_  to family  _was_  Leon and, though it meant that the other man knew him in and out, it also meant he knew Leon just as well. So, to be fair, it wasn't all the surprising when the darker skinned man came storming into the bridge, grabbed him by the neck, and proceeded to pin him to the wall nearest. He couldn't help the dark chuckle that escaped his lips when the usually gentle man even went a step further and lifted him off the ground, proving how truly powerful he was, as he glowered angrily at his younger surrogate sibling.

Law was completely calm despite the sudden violent act. He and Leon got extremely physical in their disagreements all the time when they were younger. When words were unable to get their point across, they resorted to brawls. So to Law, his first mate showing his dominance as the older sibling in their odd family dynamics was not very surprising to him at all. Yes, he couldn't breath very well, but he knew Leon would never kill him, only bash him around enough until he felt he had gotten his point across.

Besides, it's not like he'd never done the same thing to Leon. He specifically remembered a time he had stabbed a scalpel into the other's forearm in his own outburst of anger. Leon had been in a sling for weeks afterwards and their surrogate mother had been very angry at both of them.

"What did I tell you about Oz?" His voice was low, nearly a growl, indicating how  _angry_  he currently was with Law. " _What_ , Law!"

"You talk first." He would have spoken a little more eloquently, but he had a limited air supply. "Offer fair deal."

"And how in the  _four_  blues was  _this_  a  _fair_  deal!?" He all but shouted at him as he pulled him away from the wall a bit to slam him against it. "He nearly passed  _out_  hyperventilating as badly as he was. He doesn't need you playing with his anxiety levels like you do, you bastard!"

Law had enough of Leon's manhandling and lecturing. He needed air, so he quickly swiped his hand at the man, slipping the scalpel he had hidden up his sleeve at all times into his hand as he tried to slash his first mate. Leon was quick enough to catch onto to what Law was attempting and released his grip, putting some space between them before he found himself with a potentially grievous wound upon his body. Law slid down the wall as he gasped for air, half laughing as he did so and half coughing as he fought to regain his breath.

Leon was still furious, but he didn't make another attempt at attacking Law. Not now that he didn't have the upper hand and Law was actually threatening bodily harm with a scalpel. Exchanging fists and angry words was one thing with them, pulling weapons on each other was an entirely different matter. Law wasn't interested in fighting, he was interested in settling the matter. So Leon stayed his ground, willing to hear him out before deciding whether or not he was going to break a few of his captain's ribs for all the shit he had just pulled.

"I  _offered_ him a fair deal, he simply wouldn't listen. He was being irrational and it was irritating me. So I was a bit underhanded on how I convinced him to  _reconsider_." Law explained as he slowly pulled himself up.

"Reconsider? Did that look like he was  _reconsidering_ your  _job offer?_ Because if that's what reconsidering looks like to  _you_ , you and I need to have a long  _talk_  about how  _poorly_  you read people." Leon angrily lectured, as he pointed his finger towards the hallway. "Mister Oz is  _not_  reconsidering. He's plotting his escape from  _you_ , you lunatic."

"And if I let everyone who wanted to escape from me do that, I wouldn't be here today, commanding my own submarine. Let him try. It will be interesting to observe," Law responded, not even offended by Leon's word. It wasn't anything unusual to his ears.

Leon groaned as he rubbed his temples. Why did he have to be the voice of reason? Why did he always have to do the right thing? "You can't just kidnap people and expect them to like you. You don't want people who aren't loyal screwing around with the innards of a delicate piece of machinery like this one!" Wasn't this common sense 101?

That very fact already occurred to the captain, of course, but he decided that securing a talented and useful member for his crew was his priority. Working on loyalty would come later...but that wouldn't be needed if Law didn't make damn sure that Oz was to actually join them, one way or another. "It's not kidnapping, more like detaining indefinitely," Law corrected, messing with the other man on purpose. Seeing the other was not amused, he added, "Besides, the kid was practically pushed onto me by dear sweet Auntie Pluie."

"Missus Pluie." Leon's face was one of barely contained irritation. "Really Law? That's what you're going to go with? She said to give him an offer that he knows he… can't refuse." He was pinching the bridge of his nose as he fought the urge to put his captain in another chokehold. "Damnit Law! That's not what she meant! And what about his things or that 'damnable' cat of his? You had to abduct him and leave everything he owned in the world behind?"

Law sighed, already tired of Leon's pissy attitude. "Relax, I already made sure all his belongings, including his  _damnable_  cat, are onboard," he sarcastically repeated Leon's words for the cat with a dark stare. That cat was one thing he actually thought was worthy of taking among Oz's goods. "I put his possessions in observation room for the time being." Leon was honestly surprised at Law's thoughtfulness towards the cat. That room was the coolest in the submarine and often Bepo could be found pressing against the glass in there when the heat became too much for the polar bear Mink. "There wasn't much to take in the first place, Oz-ya barely made himself a home at that island, and it seemed to be just as rejecting of him. I did him a favor by taking him with us," he nonchalantly shrugged.

Leon stared at him unblinkingly as he processed what his younger surrogate brother had told him. Though he was still pissed, most of his anger left him as he slumped his shoulders and let the tension drain from him. Though, there was one thing he needed to check, for Oz's sake. "Did you pack those bags or did Missus Pluie do it." He hoped the cunning woman had done it. She had a sharp eye on her, so perhaps she already understood what one of Oz's sources of anxiety stemmed from.

The captain could already tell where Leon was going with this. "Auntie Pluie gave them to me. She knew Oz-ya needed a push out the door if he was ever to step forward into his future, and he couldn't do that while on that island," he explained. The woman knew exactly what Oz needed to start his journey; a good kick in the pants and out the door.

Leon's tension further decreased at that confession as he merely shook his head and sat down on one of the few chairs in the bridge. "Damn it, though, Law. This is not good for his anxieties. You've already pushed him several times now-"

"I do believe I wasn't the sole participant when messing with his anxiety levels, ja." Law interrupted with a smug sneer.

"Mine was on complete accident, you ass, and after the initial time, you've purposely messed with them. Stop. Or you're going to kill him." Leon warned. "If you want this to work out for you, you have to understand that Mister Oz has goals of his own and one day, if you do convince him to work for you, his goals and your goals may not always line up. What then, Law? You don't take rejection well."

Seeing most of Leon's anger was spent, Law also relaxed a little, leaning back against the wall. " _Man soll die Küken nicht zählen, bevor sie ausgebrütet sind_. A lot can happen before that time. I wouldn't bring him aboard if I didn't have the confidence that it might work out, ja," he reasoned.

"And if it doesn't? Would you be able to let go?" Leon asked him sternly. He needed to hear this. He had known Law for a long time and he knew Law did not like losing things he considered his. He had lost too many people to be able to easily let go and, as much as Leon was concerned for Oz, he was even more worried about Law if this didn't work out as he planned and he lost something he viewed as his possession. Even his animals, of which he had quite a few over the years, he hated releasing the ones that couldn't adjust into his everyday life. The surgeon easily grew attached to things he saw as his to care for and Oz needed a lot of care to properly acclimate to this environment.

Law scowled as his first mate continued to press him on the subject, much to his disgruntlement. Truth be told, he didn't even ask himself that question yet, so he had to think deeply about Leon's words, unsure of his answer. However, giving this up simply didn't sit well with him, be it because of his stubbornness or certainty that he was right. "Oz-ya might be talented, but it's not like he is the only one capable of such things in all four Blues. He would not be so irreplaceable….," he tried to show his indifference to Leon's questions. "It is not something I can know yet, anyway. However, what I do know is that there would be no point in giving up on the idea before we even see how it goes first," he countered. "If I'm wrong, we go back to how things were and if I'm right, we gain an asset to the crew." Honestly, Law didn't see the downside to it.

Leon gave him a hard stare, as if trying to see through Law's words. He knew that, while he didn't actually answer the question the way he wanted him to, he gave him the best answer he knew how to give. He let out a heavy sigh as he slammed his palms on his knees and pushed himself to a standing position. "I guess that's the only answer I will get from you, so I will do my best to manage Mister Oz's anxiety levels, but that doesn't mean you get to go messing with the kid- got it, Captain?"

Law followed the other man's movements as Leon got up, signifying the end of the conversation, much to the captain's content. He dismissively waved his hand in the air at Leon's words, "ja, ja, don't worsen his condition. I am a doctor, mind you, so I think I can deal with a person's health issues just fine without killing him."

Leon snorted at that. "Is that what you told all those lab partners you terrorized? I'm pretty sure you gave them shit just to mess with their anxiety levels to see how long it took for them to break."

Law grinned wickedly at the memory which Leon awakened. "Doctors are supposed to have strong stomachs, so if they couldn't handle it that just meant they weren't fit for the job," he answered in amusement.

"I guess you're right." Leon nodded before shooting his own smug look at Law. "I have had to stomach  _you_  for the last ten years, so that's probably why I was able to become a doctor so easily. Chef too."

"See? Aren't you glad now?  _Bitte_ ," Law smirked, not offended by his words in the least.

" _Arsch_." Leon scowled in displeasure as he started to leave the bridge. He had gotten what he had come for and now he wanted nothing more than to retreat to his kitchen and cook away his stress. After he reaffirmed to Oz that everything was okay and that his cat and things were safely aboard the ship.

"You say that, but I can hear the gratitude in your tone, ja," Law called after him in mockery, still messing with the other man. He just had to have the last word, as usual. The captain watched Leon's back as he left, before crossing his arms and leaning back against the wall again, in thought. He mulled over Leon's warnings while he started to plot the best way to ensure Oz stays in their crew by his own will.

* * *

Oz was not doing well. He was still having a hard time breathing, though Leon had managed to get him calm enough so that he didn't pass out in his anxiety. The walls of the submarine, Persephone, were suddenly too closed in. While he hadn't had a problem with it before, it was most likely because he had been free to leave the confines of the submarine at will. He didn't like feeling trapped even in the slightest and he felt as trapped as a caged bird at the moment, one that was unable to get enough space to spread its wings and take to the air.

He turned a tinge green at the thought and was relieved that Leon had had enough forethought to put him in the infirmary where a private toilet was at hand, because he had not left its vicinity since he had calmed down enough to breath. He was emptying what little he had in his stomach as his mind kept making it churn. It might have also been a tinge of sea-sickness. That had also been a small factor when he had turned down the damn Dark Doctor of his offer to join this crew. Last time he had been put on a boat, he hadn't been much better, though he had only felt nauseous, not bad enough to vomit. He was slow to get his sea-legs, but that was only if he wasn't landlocked for long periods of time, which he had been. But being under the water was having an even worse affect on him than being on a boat and he felt sicker than he ever had before- but that could also be because he's apparently claustrophobic, he just had an anxiety attack, and oh, he lost all his things in this plot to trap him on this damn submarine!

Oz was also downright miserable at the idea that all his worldly possessions were now gone- especially Teisei. He could fill up sketchbooks full of his works again and he could buy new books or re-scribe the ones he had memorized or clothes. He could buy new clothes, damn it, but the cat? Why did they have to leave without his cat? That cat was his one constant companion since leaving the monastery. He could replace everything else, but he mourned the loss of his cat. That cat was more than a pet. He was special. Teisei had watched over him since he was but a babe in his mother's arms! The monks had thoroughly believed that Teisei was his spirit animal or a guardian spirit of some sort. The lad didn't care if they partially right about him, he merely loved that beastie. Oz loved the way that cat would press against him, purring like a mini motor and rub his soft fur against him as a way to ease his sufferings. He held back a sob as he could practically feel phantom touches and purrs of his cat even now...

_Waitaminute_. Oz lifted his head, though he still felt horrible, to look where he thought he was imagining his cat's presence to see those silvery eyes staring at him as the large cat pressed lovingly and soothingly against him.

"Teisei?" The lad was ready to cry tears of joy at the appearance of his cat. His nausea was quickly dispelling now that his mind was distracted by this wonderful surprise. The cat quickly hopped into the lad's lap and closed the distance between them. Oz could only hug the beast to him in his relief, tears falling down his face at the overwhelming array of emotions he had already gone through in the last hour.

"It appears that Law had him the whole time." Oz lifted his head to see Leon walking further into the restroom of the infirmary with a bag thrown over his shoulder- Oz's beat up leather bag, in fact. "According to Law, it was Missus Pluie who liberated these from your rented room at Tabitha's and gave them to Law to take. Everything you had has been packed within, or so I was informed."

As quickly as relief filled him that at least his things were still in his possession, irritation and anger were quickly overpowering that first emotion. Pluie had been involved? And what the hell was Tabitha even doing letting the greying blunette woman into his room?! That harlot! Pluie probably didn't have to bribe her with much to give into her will. After all, he had already paid his rent for the month and now he couldn't get that money back from her, so whatever Pluie gave her was just a small bonus. Basically, everyone had damn near conspired against him. Damn it. Damn it all to-

His stomach churned again and his head was once more in the toilet. He was pretty sure he was puking up pieces of his innards, since he had already emptied his stomach of any food he might still had been digesting from  _yesterday_ , but he could have been blowing it out of proportion a bit. He wasn't a doctor and he really didn't give a shit except for the fact that he was getting damn tired of heaving up bile into the toilet. His throat felt raw, his head was pulsing with a powerful headache, there was a horrid taste in his mouth, he was feeling nauseous once more, and, the worst part of it all, he was stuck on this damn submarine that was captained by the very man he detested with every fiber of his being.

But on the very bright side, however dim it was on that side of things (No really, he wouldn't even call it a 'bright' side. It was more like the faint light of a firefly's luminescent abdomen. But it did count as a bright side...minutely.), at least he had his cat with him.

He hadn't even realized that Leon had disappeared from the entrance of the bathroom until he felt the older man's hand spread across his back to soothingly rub small circles in an attempt to help ease Oz's misery. It sadly only made Oz tense more, but the lad understood the attempt behind the gesture and said nothing about how it made his unease worse. Given time, the lad supposed it would be a comforting gesture, but at the moment, he was just one big ball of nerves. However, that wasn't all Leon had been attempting to do since he was actually bothering to sit next to the kid on the bathroom floor.

There as a glass of water pressed into his hands along with an order to take a big sip and clean out his mouth before he actually took a real drink. Oz did just that, swishing the liquid in his mouth to try to rid it of the taste of bile before spitting the soiled water into the toilet with everything else that he had managed to unwillingly regurgitate. Then, before he could even fuss or argue, there was a small pill being pressed against his lips with an order to take it.

"It's an anti-nausea pill. Swallow it." Was all Leon had to tell the kid. If he had be Law, no, Oz would have fought him tooth and nail about taking any sort of prescribed drug from the other, but Leon had earned a small enough of trust that he would comply to a request like this. Plus, he was damn tired of heaving that he was willing to trust Leon more than he normally would. Oz opened his mouth just enough to let Leon slip the pill in and proceeded to down the pill with a large swallow of water.

It wasn't instant relief, but after a good fifteen minutes or so of Leon rubbing his back (of which he finally unwound himself enough to feel comforted by) and Teisei trying to ease his anguish in his own personal way, Oz was finally feeling well enough to shakily get up and, with the darker skinned man's help, vacate the bathroom at last.

"Let's get you to your bed and hope that a little rest will get you back on your feet." Leon presented the idea gently, knowing that Oz was still not keen on being here or leaving the area of a private bathroom. "Normally I'd leave you here to recover, but this is Law's domain..."

Oz gave the man a nasty scowl at the very mention of dealing with the very man who had ' _whimsically_ ' abducted him. He would have had a sharp retort, but his seasickness prevented him from being able to think much past how queasy he still felt.

"He's not here, right?" That was the last thing he wanted to deal with.

"No, right now he's on the bridge taking the first shift at the helm with Bepo, so he won't be down here for another few hours." Leon assured the kid, having a difficult time being the other's support since, though not too short, the kid was definitely shorter than him by a whole head. Law stood only a few inches shorter than Leon, so it had always been easy to be his support, but Oz was just short enough that he had rather pick him up than have to drag him about. However, he refrained because the poor kid had already had a rough day and didn't need to be humiliated any further.

Leon and Oz had almost made it to the door when it opened. "Orpheus, however, has first shift here..." Leon muttered as Oz wanted to just die. It was bad enough that he was sick to his stomach, but to have to deal with the crew? Kill him now.

Orpheus stared blearily at the two, surprise quite evident on his face as he tried to forcibly remove his sleepiness through the action of blinking repeatedly. When that failed, he realized quickly that he  _wasn't_  imagining the familiar person before him.

"Mister Oz?" He asked warily as he slid his confusion eyes over to Leon's, asking nonverbally for the other to explain. "I thought that you had... Why are you on the submarine?"

"Why did we leave the shipyard at four in the damn morning?" The first mate asked in a rather irked tone. He knew he shouldn't take it out on someone as levelheaded as Orpheus, but damn, he was still pissed at how underhanded Law had been about the whole ordeal.

"My original suspicion was to avoid paying the fee for docking there so long and having to pay the rest of the bill for having it repaired." Orpheus raised a brow as he studied Oz's limp form. "I can already see that my first assumption was incorrect. Is Mister Oz alright, Mister Leon?"

"He's apparently easily seasick, something  _Captain_  did not take into consideration in this little stunt of his." Leon informed the medic-in-training. When he noticed that Orpheus was still looking at his unexpected patient with worry, he sighed as he readjusted his grip on Oz. "Don't worry about him. I've done what I can for him, but now he has to rest and recover."

"Shouldn't he do that in here then? Where he can be monitored, sir?" Orpheus winced a bit at his own realizations when he got to dark glares from the two before him. Right. Oz was not keen on their captain and this was his playground to which Orpheus managed for him in his absence.

In order to make amends for his slip up, he decided to offer what little he could. "Perhaps then I should take Mister Oz to Basil and my quarters? It's a little less crowded than the mechanic's rack. I can monitor him throughout the day even."

Leon didn't give the novice medic an answer right away, glancing at the chubby kid and debating his answer, but he eventually nodded, seeing as Orpheus would no doubt have an easier time of dragging Oz around since he was closer in height with the average sized mechanical genius than him. Plus, it would be good training for him to watch over the seasick kid and learn how to properly care for someone in this condition. Though Oz looked slightly reluctant, the moment Orpheus got the single nod of approval, he moved quickly to Oz's other side and relieved Leon of the burden.

"I was going to put him in the same quarters as the other mechanics, but I suppose you are right in your offering to bunk him with you and your brother. You two won't get in his face as quickly and it might throw Law off for a while." The first place Law would look for the lad after realizing that he hadn't been put straight to work would be either here, the observation room, or the barrack that all of the current mechanics had conglomerated in.

"Very well, sir," Orpheus calmly nodded before taking the awkward weight from the chef's shoulders and adjusting Oz to easily lean on him. "I will also refrain from mentioning his whereabouts as long as Captain fails to ask me directly."

"Is it bad that I forget how wonderfully underhanded you can be?" Leon couldn't help but smile at how even Law's underlings in his own division played against him at times.

"I'm not keen about any sort of negative confrontations. I don't see the point of creating a commotion when it's easier to be slightly manipulative of the circumstances, and avoiding trouble altogether." Orpheus shrugged calmly. "Besides, at this point, Captain may cause more harm than good. I'm just doing my duty as a medic by assisting Mister Oz to a better controlled, more relaxed environment."

Oz muttered a tired thank you, his eyes heavy as exhaustion seeped into his bones. At this point all he wanted to do was curl up in the privacy of a room and suffer his symptoms away from damn manipulative pirate Captains. Leon nodded his thanks before heading back to his kitchen, knowing Oz was in good hands. He had breakfast he needed to get ready and the men of this ship were cranky brats when food wasn't ready on time. He made a mental note to prepare something easy on the stomach for Oz for when he was feeling more amiable towards eating. Orpheus had, as Leon suspected, a much easier time being Oz's support as he lead the kid to the sleeping quarters.

"It's currently only Basil and myself in this room at this point in time, so no one loud is going to be bursting into the room and causing a ruckus." Orpheus explained a bit out of breath when he finally got the two of them into the room.

He was trying to hurry now at getting Oz seated in the only chair in the room before he accidentally dropped the kid. He wasn't as strong as Leon or Law so supporting Oz's near dead weight had begun to take a serious toll on his endurance. The young mechanical genius was not light. At all.

Despite being winded by his endeavor, he played it off as well as he could as he began pointing at the two bottom bunks within the barracks. The room was not huge, but all the bunks were alcoves within the wall and the beds were big enough to accommodate decently large people (not  _really_  tall people, but a head taller than Leon). Orpheus could roll around on his bed a few times without hitting walls or falling off the bed. His personal belongings were stored in the back corner of his bed as were his required reading with plenty of room to spare.

"That one is my bed and Basil has claimed the other. The rest are up for grabs."

"Hm." Oz hummed his understanding, nodding his head slowly.

He looked ready to drop dead in Orpheus's opinion with how terrible he looked. His eyes had heavy bags under them, nearly purple and his eyes looked sunken in while his complexion was extremely pallor. Had he not just been looked at by Leon, the medic assistant would have been tempted to drag him back to the infirmary so Law could check up on his obvious poor disposition. Having him here on the sub really didn't seem to be the best idea that Captain had ever come up with, but then again, Orpheus couldn't deny that Trafalgar Law was compulsive at times when it came to certain things.

Basil and himself joining this crew had to be one of those compulsive decisions. Basil was, as everyone kept put it much to Orpheus's chagrin, a walking charity case and Orpheus simply had only  _dreamed_  of becoming medically trained. Not only that, but they had been nearly homeless, the control Orpheus tried to keep crumpling away like dust, and were soon to find themselves in a lot of trouble when Captain had offered to spirited them away. Perhaps their captain was more of a bleeding heart than he let on… or perhaps just unnaturally selfish when it came to getting his way. The novice medic wasn't sure which one it was at this point, but he would assume the latter.

"Let me help you into bunk and I will come back to check on you every hour until I'm sure you're doing better." Orpheus tried his best to be as helpful as possibly.

He nearly swore aloud, which was a feat to accomplish because he did not like to cuss, when the young mechanic, who  _must_  have had some vendetta against him, chose one of the three highest bunks in the room. Luckily, the kid managed mostly by himself to climb up the ladder and curled into a ball in the corner of the alcoved bunk that made it impossible to see him from the entrance of the room. Orpheus wondered momentarily if he would have to lug up the cat along with Oz's things, but that abnormally large feline with the unsettling sadistic tendencies had already grabbed his master's backpack and  _jumped_  up the distance like it was nothing.

That settled it for Orpheus. That cat was unnatural (the damn thing was too huge to be a domestic animal) and nobody could tell him it was  _just_  a damn cat.  _Maybe_  a dwarf jaguar with melanism, but, no, he was certain it was not a cat. Not really. Not if his own personal life experience were anything to go by. He rubbed the bridge of his nose as he tried to remind himself that it wasn't there to cause problems. It was there to relieve Oz's stress, or so he hoped that was the beast's purpose. Gods, he hoped it was a cat.

"I will be back soon. Captain should still be at the helm for a few more hours, but he might come back sooner if he thinks you're there. I'll try for every hour, but I will also attempt not to draw Captain's attention to my constant absence. Do you want me to bring you anything?"

"Just water." Oz mumbled so low that Orpheus almost didn't hear him. "And a bucket."

"Right. I'll get you those things."

"Thanks." The clipped way that Oz spoke the word showed how  _done_  he was with people but was still grudgingly grateful for the unexpected support. The lad was usually very pleasant despite being skittish, but then again, Orpheus couldn't help but muse that he too would be angry and short with people if he had been set up by everyone around him to be abducted by someone like the Heart Captain.

Orpheus didn't say anything more as he left the room and allowed the young mechanic to have some well deserved peace to rest as he continued to fight off the nausea of his sea-sickness. He partially closed the door, incase the beast of a cat needed to stretch its legs in the near future, and proceeded to get back to the infirmary before Law got there and noticed he wasn't there at all.

He hoped things got better soon. He hated situations like these and he only now realized that he may have unintentionally put himself smack dab in the middle of the very issue. Damnit. His best means of getting out of trouble when Captain did figure out what was going on was to shift the blame to Leon, after all, he was the first mate and Orpheus did have to take his orders.

Problem solved, the brunet man thought confidently. Until then, he best take care of Oz without Captain finding out.

* * *

Oz groaned in misery. He had been in and out of consciousness, exhausted from the constant nausea that was barely kept at bay by the pill Leon had given him and slightly feared it would wear off soon. His anxieties were slowly leveling out over time, but he still would have random spikes where he felt like he couldn't breath when he thought about his current predicament all over again. At this point, however, between Teisei's ability to comfort him and being so sea-sick that he just wanted to die, he stopped caring about being stuck in the sub. He promised himself to think of a way out later, after conquering this wretched bout of nausea.

He was glad he had asked for a bucket along with that water. He suddenly snatched it up and heaved into it, trying as quietly as he could because of the fact that Orpheus hadn't closed the door all the way. His cat petted at the back of his neck with the soft fur of his tail and he laid where Oz had cuddling him before his urge to vomit overpowered him.

"Mer-ow?" Oz heard the soft gentle call that sounded  _nothing_  like Teisei's tone. He managed to summon his strength to lean close to the edge of his bunk and stare down at the floor.

There, staring up at him with the prettiest blue eyes, was a fluffy cat with a mix a white fur and grey accents with a tail so fluffy it looked to be as big as the cat itself. Teisei got up from where he laid to also look down at the cat that had made such a pretty call.

"I'll be damned," Oz muttered to his companion as the cat purred at the sight of them. "Do you think it's his?"

His cat sniffed as he went back to the corner he marked as his. Oz laughed a bit cruelly, a bit of humor surfacing as he watched his cat sulk. "What's wrong? Mad you're not as  _special_  as you  _planned_  to be?  _Jealous_  he already had a  _cat_  on his submarine?"

Oz didn't care when his cat sent him a warning hiss. He took pleasure from the thing's fury. "You damn beast, I know you came onto this vessel willingly. You probably didn't do more than let him pick you up and demand he pet your ears. I was _tricked._ It serves you right, you traitor."

The cat from below let out another pretty call, alerting Oz of its presence within the bunk alcove. The mechanic was rather impressed at its ability to climb. Teisei could jump the distance easy, but for other cats, it took skill. Laying back down in the corner of the bed (Teisei situating himself so he was cuddled up against Oz) away from any line of sight, Oz studied the pretty cat as it studied both the new human and cat within its domain. Teisei huffed testily, but flicked his tail in a way that alerted his human that he would tolerate the other beast.

The other cat seemed to sense that as well and proceeded to trot closer to Oz, butting its head against the his outstretched hand as a signal for attention.

"I cannot believe how fluffy and soft you are." Oz snorted a bit, his mind distracted a bit from his nausea by the newcomer. The cream cat with the light grey socks and muzzle was as soft as a bunny- possibly softer.

Teisei raised his head, glaring jealously at his companion before he was immediately taken aback by how bold the new cat was when it plopped itself down right on top of him and adding to the cuddle pile by leaning back against Oz for support. The much bigger cat was about to let out a noise of distaste but the blue eyed cat booped its nose against his, silencing his detests before he could voice them. Defeated by its charm, the silver eyed cat huffed again, and laid his head down with a heavy plop, resigned to the adorable thing lounging on top of him using him as its pillow.

It purred like a motor. The sound brought a sense of peace to Oz. He still felt awful, but he didn't dwell in it as he had been doing. He mindlessly petted both cats. Mostly the fluffy long haired cat and only switching when his feline companion made a noise of protest or thwacked his tail against him in a silent act of jealousy. His eyes closed and though he still felt wretched, he was able to close his eyes and drift again in the presence of the two animals.

* * *

He woke from his light sleep with a small startle when he heard someone climbing up the ladder of his bed. Orpheus had checked on him a while ago, the fluffy cat having hidden behind him during the brief interaction, but the clicking of shoes on the ladder's rungs as the person climbed was a different sound. Whoever was climbing up was a different weight than Orpheus which caused the clicking noise to change accordingly. Much to his relief, he caught glimpse of the top of a grey banned white fedora and knew instantly who it was.

Leon pulled himself up to the point that he could look in but made no effort to crawl into the alcove. He was carrying two thermoses and a tin of crackers, discarding them quickly onto the edge of the bed so that he could better hold onto to the ladder.

He looked like he was about to go into a whole explanation about what he was doing there, but the moment he caught glimpse of the submarine's cat, he let out a look of pure relief.

" _Bells_." He breathed out as tension left his shoulders. "So this is where you've been hiding, sweetheart."

"Your cat?" Oz asked lowly, calming down now that he wasn't worried that Law had discovered his location.

"Yes but no." Leon reached for the cat, but it jumped over Oz and squeezed itself against him and the wall. Leon sighed as didn't try to grab for the cat again. "Mad at him, huh?  _Hunny_ …"

He stared tiredly at where the cat was not looking at him and decided to ignore that situation and focus on what brought him here.

"How are  _you_  feeling?"

"Still miserable. Orpheus has probably had to switch out my bucket three times already." Oz reported unhappily. His eyes still felt heavy and no doubt he looked like shit warmed over. "But -Bells was it- and Teisei have been keeping me company."

"Belladonna, actually, but that's too much of a mouthful most times and so we often shorten it to Bells." Leon explained before reaching over and resting the back of his hand on Oz's forehead. "You're still pretty clammy. I brought some soup and crackers as well as some chamomile tea, if you're up for trying."

"I will probably puke it all back up, but I haven't eaten all day- what time is it anyways?" Oz tried sitting up. He disturbed both cats and the two of them scrambled about as they claimed new spots cuddled up close to Oz.

"I just finished serving lunch and damn near had to drag Law away from his witch hunt for you to eat." He informed his patient as he opened one of the thermoses and started pouring a little broth into a cup for Oz to drink. "He's pissed I hid you so well- that I even took you out of the infirmary if you were so motion sick, really- but don't worry, Orpheus and Basil have created a situation to distract him for at least a half an hour. I also brought you another anti-nausea pill for you to take once you've eaten a bit."

Oz grunted an acknowledge to the last part while to took the cup offered out to him and sipped on it slowly. He scowled as he thought angrily about the dark doctor even looking for him. The last person he wanted to see was his tormentor, but he seemed adamant about messing with Oz's anxiety levels  _despite_  it being counterintuitive as a medical professional.

"Not only that, but he's been looking around for Bells." He gestured at the cat now resting against Oz's side.

Oz nearly choked on his broth at that. "She's  _his_  cat? Are you sure about that?" Sure, he had taunted Teisei about the possibility of her being Law's cat, but the fact that it actually  _was_  completely confounded him.

"Didn't we already agree he was more of an animal person? He's had Bells since she was a newborn kitten." The chef revealed as he opened up the packet of crackers. "She normally is waiting for him in his room when he gets back from being on shore, but it seems she's mad at him for being gone as long as he was. He doesn't like taking her off the submarine if he can help it. However, Bells isn't use to being alone."

Oz looked at the cat with great contemplation before he began scratching behind her ear, sipping his broth with his other hand. "She seems pretty social to be  _his_  cat."

Leon let out a short laugh as he offered Oz a cracker. "Ironically enough, she's picky with who she likes. She likes Bepo and I well enough, but Law's her human. I'm honestly surprised she's even letting you touch her. Even Elias has a seventy percent shot of getting attacked for even trying to touch her. And most times, he's trying to  _avoid_  touching her."

"Hey,  _she_  came to  _me_." The other stopped petting her to reach over for the cracker.

"Then feel honored." Leon hummed humorously. He watched as Bells decided to bully the bigger cat into cuddling with her, which the black cat testily accepted. He laughed a bit as he spoke to Oz's feline. "I'll warn you now, Teisei. She gets what she wants. She grew up with at least two of her siblings and has bullied Rai for years into doing what she wants- and Ria has bigger and sharper teeth than you, cat."

"Who's Ria?" Oz couldn't help but ask as he nibbled on a cracker. He didn't rightly care, but any and all information he had on Law would be considered beneficial and, besides, the conversation was distracting him with how he felt.

"Ah, don't worry too much about Ria. She's Law's dog. We had to leave her with a friend when we picked up the submarine. Bells misses her something awful though. Wouldn't leave Law's room for about a week, moping on the bed for hours at a time. Bepo carried her around for about five hours at one point just to try to cheer her up." From the saddened look on Leon's face, he missed the dog too. He stared at Bells for a moment longer before fishing out the anti-nausea pill for Oz to take.

"Well, I've chatted long enough. I don't really know how long Basil can fake an injury before Law realizes he's been had, so I best be going. Orpheus will take the thermoses once you're done with them."

Oz nodded at him before popping the pill into his mouth and taking a big sip of the broth. His stomach felt a little more settled, but now he was just exhausted again. He did nudge Belladonna and gestured at the cat to go with Leon, but she merely dug herself under Teisei, who desperately wanted to be rescued from the smaller cat but wouldn't run from something smaller than him.

"Oh, let don't worry about that. Bells will leave when she thinks she's punished Law enough."

"She can stay as long as she wants then." Anything to cause agony or distress towards that man.

Leon chuckled at the comment. "Sounds like your mood is at least recovering. Lay down when you're done. It should help with the motion sickness."

"Hm." Was Oz's nonverbal reply as he sipped more of the broth and helped himself to a cracker.

Leon excused himself, leaving the room promptly as to not alert Law of where Oz was hidden away.

* * *

"You know it's only a matter of time until he figures everything out. And he'll only be more pissed if he finds out  _you_  kept it from him." If it wasn't for the fact that Elias had a nasty habit of appearing around corners, Leon would have been more alarmed.

The chef gave him a hard stare, but continued his trek back to the kitchen. Elias walked alongside him, not looking up from the budget he was reviewing. "I know I can't hid Oz for too much longer, but give the poor thing a break. Law enjoys riling the kid up too much to just leave Oz out in the open."

"That's not what I'm talking about." Elias grouched.

"Damn that nose of yours. Can you smell  _everything_?"

"I don't need my sense of  _smell_  to know- though you might want to explain things a bit better to that poor bear of yours."

"Doctor-patient confidentiality."

"Ugh, must you always be so anal about standard procedure?" Elias griped as he lifted his eyes from the sheet to glare testily at the submarine's first mate.

"I don't know, must you always be snobby about your 'alternative food sources'?" The chef shot back, giving the other man a warning glare.

That only seemed to spike the other man's grouchiness. "Do you think I  _like_  my predicament? I helped you two when I didn't have to (I still  _am_   _now_!), so don't go complaining about my  _preferred tastes_. I didn't have to enchant all those-"

"Yes, fine,  _fine_." Leon wanted to drop the subject. They weren't suppose to mention  _that_  outside the confines of Law's office for a  _reason_.

" _You_  brought it  _up_." Elias hissed, not pleased at being so quickly dismissed. "Anyways, talk to your bear before he talks to Law, if you want to avoid problems."

"I  _can't_." The darker skinned man was getting fed up with the treasurer trying to make him break his moral stance of being a doctor. "But since you  _seem_  to know what's going on,  _without_  having pledged such confidentiality,  _you_  can tell him."

" _Fine._ "

"Fine."

"And can you at least coax Belladonna out of hiding?" Elias added before Leon had a chance to escape his presence. "I am getting a headache from the endless chanting of Bells, Bella, Bell, and 'here kitty kitty kitty' that he's been doing for the last hour. I think he's more interested in finding the evil little beast than he is with finding his new  _mechanical genius._ "

"My apologies Elias~," Leon wore a smug grin on his lips not too dissimilar to Law's as he sauntered away towards his kitchen. "I haven't the slightest of where she is, but, by all means, try finding her yourself."

Elias furrowed his brow as he glared daggers into the man's back. He didn't doubt for a second that he knew where that fluffy hellcat was. He grumbled under his breath a few choice words before turning around and heading back towards his own quarters. He decided he'd just have to invest in earplugs at the next island and hoped they'd work.

Until then, he decided to play with the books a bit and see how long it took both Captain and First Mate that it wasn't wise to piss off the man managing the money. He already knew he'd get beaten for doing it, but he couldn't think of anything more worth the consequence.

He passed Bepo on his way back and stopped with him a slight tug upon his boiler suit sleeve. "Ah, Bepo, you and I need to have a chat."

Elias knew he was seen as a grouchy noble with a distaste for insolence and crude manners, but even he could admit that he wasn't needlessly cruel. He was also quite the opportunist. That's why Law hired him in the first place.

Oz would owe him later for this act of charity, however.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man soll die Küken nicht zählen, bevor sie ausgebrütet sind: One should not count the chicks before they hatched
> 
> Bitte: It can mean a lot of things. In this case, 'You are welcome'


	5. Pot and Kettle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own One piece, but I do own my ideas and my OCs

His head throbbed in absolute agony, but he pressed on, resolved to ignore it in favor of finishing what he had started. The lights were burning at his retinas, forcing him to keep his hands in his pockets lest he begin the rub at his sockets irritably. It wouldn't do any good anyways, so there was little point in irritating them further. The man was miserable. Regardless, he pushed onwards in his quest, knowing he wouldn't be able to rest right without soothing his two predominate concerns- Oz and Belladonna. He honestly hoped not to run into Leon feeling the way he did, barely being able to pass his pounding migr-  _headache_  as irritation when Basil had rushed into the infirmary having misplaced his inhaler and fighting for each gasping breath of air he could. He had been startled badly when he had accidentally knocked over an entire stack of clean pots with his elbow. The young teen had spooked himself badly enough that he started having an attack. And when the young boy couldn't find his inhaler, his panic spiked even further. Luckily, Law had already trained Basil to come  _immediately_  to the infirmary.

So as Law helped Basil get control of his breathing again, Orpheus went out to hunt down his brother's spare inhaler. Honestly, both brothers were lucky he had even  _been_  in the infirmary, checking to see if Oz had been finally brought back in so that he could tend to the sea-sick mechanical genius. If he was so violently ill by the motion of the submarine, the doctor in Law wanted to hook him up to an IV as soon as possible to keep him hydrated despite how many times he vomited. Dealing with Basil took about half an hour, but soon the teen he had assigned to Leon's watch was breathing normally again and sent back to his post after Law cleared him.

Law left the infirmary after that, determined to at least find the mechanic to make sure he was fine. Leon could tell him till he was blue in the face that young Oz was okay, but Law's mind wouldn't let it go until he saw to it himself. He was still angry at himself that his plans had already begun to go awry. The kid should have taken maybe an hour before calming down enough to be sent down to where the rest of the mechanics were. He had never expected him to get so violently sea-sick or he wouldn't have left him in Leon's care alone.

It felt like this brat kept purposely throwing wrenches in his perfectly laid out plans just to spite the pirate captain. It was half the reason Law wanted to find Oz himself, so he  _knew_  whether or not this kid was faking and preying Leon's nurturing nature to keep from actually working. Mostly, however, he was concerned for his newest subordinate and he, despite his antagonistic nature that riled the lad up, wanted to make sure he was okay. The doctor in him couldn't let it go.

As soon as he made sure Oz was doing alright and hooked up to the IV if needed, Law would be able to let that thought go and finish searching for Belladonna. He wouldn't be able to rest until he knew she was safe, half fearful that she had slipped off the submarine before they had taken off and was now forever stranded at that backwater town. His chest had been uncomfortably heavy since noticing her missing from her usual places and he didn't feel like he could breathe right. He had owned Belladonna since she was a suckling newborn kitten pushing her bigger brothers out of her smaller sisters' way so they could drink from their mother's tits without overcrowding. He didn't feel comfortable not knowing where she was when he had been forced to be gone for so long. He always felt bad leaving her on the submarine, but he didn't like the idea of people knowing about his attachment to the little beast. He never wanted her used against him and had heart palpitations at the mere thought of someone killing her as a way to harm him.

He needed to find Oz. He needed to find Belladonna. It was a mantra in his head at this point and the only thing keeping him from dropping the items he was carrying and going to hide under the covers of his bed to try to rid himself of this migr-  _headache. It was a headache_. Maybe even let Leon fuss over him a bit, seeing as the man  _did_  a good job at tending to Law's needs when he fell into a state like this.

Today was not proving to be his day, despite starting off so well with securing Oz before leaving the port. He swayed a bit, losing his equilibrium with how badly his head throbbed suddenly in that moment, but instead of crashing into a wall or having to quickly yank his hands out of his pockets in some dexterous feat he could not pull off in this state, he was caught and steadied by two familiar hands.

"It's just the lights." Law tried to shrug off the thousand of worried questions that no doubt were on the tip of Leon's tongue as he tried to continue on his manhunt. "We've been exposed to natural light so long that the fluorescents are bothering my eyes, ja."

" _Bullshit_. You are having a migraine, aren't you?" Leon was already pinning him against a wall and taking a look at his pupils. Law jerked his head when Leon barely touched his temple.

Fine. It was a migraine. A god-awful migraine he got from time to time and he sorely wished it could have come  _tomorrow_  if it had to come  _at all_. He would have found Oz and, hopefully, Bells by then.

"It's not too bad yet." He was lying very poorly and even he could hear his words slurring a bit. His head felt miserable. However, his mind wouldn't let go of its vice grip on the chubby mechanical genius.

"Liar." His voice was quieter. He knew loud noises rattled painfully in Law's head when he had a migraine. He grabbed Law gently by the shoulder and tugged on him. "Come on, let's go get you situated in your room and I'll go-"

"No." Law yanked free of his hold and proceeded to walk down the hall Leon had appeared from. He had been behind him when he had steadied him so he probably came for the adjoining hallway. Towards the barracks. Oz was in the barracks somewhere. He winced at the mental exertion even the simplest deduction caused him. But he was so damn close to finding the brat that it was all he could focus on.

He didn't get very far before everything started spinning again as he completely lost his balance and he nearly passed out right there in the hallway. His migraine had finally surpassed his pain threshold.

" _Du dummkopf_." Leon was hefting him up into his arms while Law weakly fought him. He hated being picked up and carried- but everyone throughout his whole damn life did it anyways! What about him made people heft him up into their hold?! "You're no use to anyone like this."

"I- I  _can't_ …" He  _had_  to make sure Oz really was okay. As both the captain and a doctor, he  _had_  to make sure everyone under his care was well taken care of. Not only that, he  _had_  to find Bells.

Any anger Leon still held against him for his earlier stunt that morning melted away. "You are not going to give up, are you? Even if I drag your ass to the infirmary and chain you to a bed?"

" _Die Krankenstation ist zu hell_." Law complained in his mother tongue, now completely giving up on pretending he'd been having a simple headache. He didn't whine often- hated whining on principle alone- but having a migraine sapped him of his usual composure. He draped an arm over his eyes, trying to minimize the offending sensitivities that were growing stronger and stronger now that he had passed his tolerance level.

"And I haven't found Bells yet." If he couldn't have peace of mind about Oz, he at the very least wanted his cat. They had to leave Wisteria when they had finally started out on their voyage as the Heart Pirates  _officially_  and all he had left was Bells. He  _needed_  her.

"Alright. Alright. I caught sight of her. Actually, she's with Mister Oz. Wouldn't let me touch her or I would have brought her to you." Leon whispered soothingly and he hefted the other man into a more comfortable position to lug him around and started walking- in which direction, Law really couldn't tell anymore. He was pretty sure they were walking on the ceiling with how his head felt.

However, simply hearing that Belladonna was on the ship brought on a wave of relief as the tension in his shoulders melted and he went limp against Leon. Bells was safe.

" _Ich werde mich benehmen, ja_." His voice was soft, but any louder and he'd grow nauseous from the overstimulation his own voice would cause him. "I  _need_  to check on Oz-ya." He  _needed_  it off his mind.

" _Fünf Minuten_." Leon told him as he took another turn. Law was getting dizzy from the motion, even if his eyes were closed. "I will give you five minutes to check on Oz and fetch Bells. After that, I'm taking you to your room and you're using sumatriptan."

"I hate nasal sprays." Leon turned on his heel so fast Law nearly vomited his half-digested lunch on both of them.

"Fine!" He managed to gasp, swallowing back the urge. " _Fine_."

"That's what I  _thought_  you said." Leon growled as he carefully turned this time and continued to carry Law. There were times when him being so damn skinny was a perk rather than a disquieting concern.

The two of them reached the door that lead to Basil and Orpheus's barracks and Law had to work hard at not giving into the urge to bite Leon in his frustration. He hadn't even  _looked_  there. Leon, mercifully, set him on his feet and, despite how uneasy he felt on them, managed to walk into the room with the other doctor.

"Did you forget something Mister Le-" Oz started, half asleep as he rolled over to peer down at the man only to see the very person he was hoping to avoid seeing for the next day or so. He would have felt betrayed, but the way Leon looked and the way Law looked told him there was more to this story. Seriously though, Law looked awful as the lad stared down at him. The words came out of his mouth before he properly had time to think about what he was saying. "What's wrong with your face?"

Law didn't answer, though he glowered as darkly as he could (but really he was squinting because Oz was up so high and the lights were so damn bright), but he looked ready to fall over at any moment. Leon answered in his stead. "He's having a migraine and should be lying in his room in the dark, but instead he's insisted he cannot rest until he's sure you're alright."

"He abducts me and then wants to know if I'm alright…" The nerve of this man knew no bounds! If Oz had felt better, he would have been angry. Now all he felt was a numbness to the whole situation.

"There's a backward logic to it all in his mind, please humor him at least once a day until we have this whole mess sorted out." He looked at Law. "Your five minutes start now."

Law looked at him vastly offended and upset. "I can't climb up there." Not with his head spinning as it was.

"Then looks like you'll just have to get over it. You can see him. He's alive.  _Leave him alone_."

"How do I know he's properly hydrated. If he's been vomiting, he might be severely dehydrated and needs an IV." Oz blinked rather surprised at how much Law had been worried about him. Law had expressed concern for him before during his anxiety attacks and, though he had been the cause for most of them, he did his best to take care of him afterwards. Maybe Trafalgar Law wasn't so bad… Of course, the man had to continue and  _ruin_  it. "How do I know if he hasn't been faking it the whole damn time, ja."

"How about I drop my puke bucket on your head to show you my proof." Oz groused as he pulled himself back into the comforts of his bunk.

"Fine.  _Whatever_. Return Bells." So he knew Belladonna was up here. There was a short silence as Oz was busy rolling his eyes and not in the mood to talk to him anymore.

"How did she even get up there?" The words were spoken quietly and probably not anything more than a mystified question to himself.

Oz answered all the same. "Climbed."

Okay, so it wasn't the most polite or poetic response. He was still feeling very petty about the whole abduction and the accusation that he was  _faking_  sea-sickness when he had been lying in bed in misery all day thus far because  _someone had a passing whimsy to leave while Oz was still on board_.

"Bring her down." He was probably gritting his teeth as he tried to not lose his temper and shout. It wouldn't do to lose his temper about something so silly and, besides, if he  _really_  had a migraine, it'd kill him more than his tantrum would kill Oz. Actually, it would bring the lad a lot of glee at this moment.

"Can't." Which  _was_  the truth. He really couldn't find the energy to climb down. In reality though, he really didn't want to. "How about you climb up and get her instead. Or perhaps not. I'm really growing fond of her and I might convince her to stay with me."

"She's  _my_  cat. Return her to me."

"And you aducted me. Return me and I'll happily surrender her to you." He danced his fingers about in front of Belladonna and she was easily lured into his hold to be petted.

"I am not returning you to that illiterate hicksville." He was not turning his submarine around. Not to mention, they hadn't paid for most of the long term docking or the repairs.

"Then I suppose I'm not returning your cat." Oz sniffed down at him, stroking the fluffy cat dramatically.

" _Really_  you two.  _REALLY_?!" Leon broke through their bickering.

"Not so damn loud." Law hissed.

Oz wondered how miserable his face must look as the mechanic petted the cat in question. She looked slightly torn but as long as she wasn't trying to get down, Oz wasn't going to force her nor would he keep her if she wished to go. She was  _Law's cat_  after all.

Leon must have gotten fed up with  _both_  of their attitudes, because the next thing Oz realized was that Law had been abandoned there in the room alone with him. His heart jumped to his throat and he began to squirm, rolling about so he could peer at where Leon had been from the safety of his bunk, but just as rapidly as he had left, he returned with a pillow and blanket.

He tucked one side of the blanket onto the bed above it, pinning it so it draped across the bunk below like a shield. He then tossed the pillow onto the bottom bunk and practically forced Law into the covered bunk. The young mechanic was more surprised that Law didn't even fight him. His migraine must have been pretty bad then and Oz almost felt bad.  _Almost_. Then he remembered  _why_  he felt  _awful_  and stopped himself from caring.

"Stay there." Leon told him sternly as he flicked out the lights and closed the door so only a sliver of light shone through the bottom. Oz didn't miss the soft sigh that Law released as he didn't bother moving from where he had been forced to lay. Belladonna and Teisei now peering down at the bunk below with the mechanic. Oz watched, ready for him to move and attempt again to antagonize him, but nothing.

He really must have a migraine. It was impressive that he had managed as long as he did, but the moment his body felt the relief of a bed and the silent darkness, he had become unable to keep the charade up any longer. He hadn't even bothered to toe out of his shoes, not that Oz had, now that he was thinking about it. In fact, he was still in his coveralls. He decided to stay in them, though he quietly kicked off his shoes at last.

After about ten minutes Leon had returned to the room, flicking on the lights with his elbow, hands full as he made his way to the sink that resided in the room. Oz blinked. He hadn't even seen that sink when he had first entered. He grabbed the lone chair, placed it by the end of the bunk Law was occupying where it served as a makeshift bedside table and began to place things there.

He reached over and turned off the lights again, but didn't bother shutting the door and the outside hallway lights lit the room in a secondhand light. He lifted the blanket shielding Law from the light and Oz could hear the faintest groan. That noise sealed it for Belladonna and the cat began making her way down and slipped into the bunk to be with him. Leon spoke softly and while Oz could understand his words, decided that it was none of his business.

He gave Law a tissue, forced him to blow his nose before helping him with a nasal spray of some sort- to which Law complained he hated. Leon ignored him and went back to the sink, where he deposited the spray and brought back a bowl of water and a cloth. He wetted it, wrung it out, and no doubt placed it on Law's head before he readjusted the blanket and went to the other side and pulled off Law's shoes.

He stood back after he was finished and spoke to both of them.

"Until you two can get along  _nicely_ , I'm just going to leave the two of you in here." Oz was about to point out that Orpheus and Basil also slept here, but Leon cut him off. "I will be making a few checks on you two, but, otherwise- take care of each other. Basil and Orpheus will be fine for one night elsewhere. Bathrooms are down the hall. If I catch you anywhere other than here or a quick trip there and back, Mister Oz, I will drag you back and I will move your bunk to the one directly above Law's and drag you back into that bunk every time you try to move. I will then make more and more frequent checks and the more I have to check, the more you will regret it."

Oz was already regretting his entire life- why would any more regret make a difference?

"And you  _will_  regret it,  _Mister_  Oz."

Oz huffed but conceded. There were some things that could still get worse, he decided. Law dropped something off his bunk and Leon shook his head.

"You've had an IV bag in your hoodie pocket this whole damn time." Leon regarded the item as he picked it up. Law stuck out his hand that held the missing components still in a sterile bag.

"Hook up Oz-ya before you go."

Leon looked up at Oz who was peering down at him again. "Do you see the bullshit I put up with? Do you get why he wins?"

"Is that why that hook is on the side of the bed?" He had been wondering if it was a hook rack or something else when he had been forced to lie there unable to sleep.

"It's a catch all." They hadn't had to use it for that yet, but the bag hooked in perfectly and held the bag higher than the patient. The yellow eyed mechanic didn't fuss when Leon allowed Law's one last request, climbing up to Oz as the other just let him do it. He had been having a hard time keeping down fluids anyways. He watched, slightly turning nauseous again as Leon pushed in the needle, but refused to not watch.

Leon hopped down quietly. Grabbed a canteen from the sink and quickly gave Law some water before returning it to its spot, which Oz frowned at, not sure what the point was of doing that. The chef then bid them goodnight (even though they had just had lunch? Oz's sense of time was shot to hell by all of this) and left.

The two of them lay in the dark, each in their own agony for a good amount of time before Law finally spoke.

"He put the water by the sink, didn't he."

"Yes."

"I'm thirsty." Oz blinked. Why was he telling him this? "Go get it for me, ja."

The shanghaied mechanic spitefully dropped his boot onto the floor below as his response, Law let out a small pain filled gasp at the noise. He waited about thirty seconds and proceeded to drop the other one before, to make sure his answer was  _absolutely_  clear, he said, " _no_."

* * *

"I think I'm going to be sick." The words had been so quiet, but they had been heard regardless. They were the first words that had come out of Law's mouth in the past hour and Oz didn't ignore this warning.

Being petty about water was one thing, but vomit was an entirely different matter- seeing as he knew very well how it felt. He luckily remembered the IV bag and grabbed it and held it in his mouth to free up his hands before quickly yet shakily making it down the steps and over to the sink where Leon had left  _everything_. He knew Law would eventually get like this and had left it to Oz to take care of him. Bastard.

Oz barely made it over to the bed and helped the dark doctor sit up high enough to use the bucket. He set it down after Law finished emptying the contents of his stomach into it.

Law glanced at him, wiping up his mouth a bit with his sleeve, and his eyes locked onto the lad's IV bag. "That's supposed to be held  _higher_  than your body."

Oz rolled his eyes, taking it from his mouth and leaning over to hook it on Law's bunk's hook. "Forgive my personal neglect. I was busy making sure you didn't make a mess of your borrowed bed- heaven  _knows_  it wouldn't be you who'd have to disinfect it." He surveyed the man as the heart captain slowly lowered himself back down, head on the pillow and his arms reaching for Belladonna, who quickly returned to his hold, and laid on his side away from Oz. "You look like shit."

"I'll take your word for it and add good eyesight to your future medical file then." His hands were buried in her soft fur as he stroked her slowly.

"I mean it." Oz hovered over him. "You look terrible."

"Stop stroking my vanity with such  _kind_  words." He winced at his own sarcastic words. He had spoken them too loudly.

"Didn't Leon give you medication for this?" Oz had always had a gentle voice when he wasn't angry. All the anger had been pushed to the side now that he saw how miserable Law really was. He was still angry, but it was useless to hold onto it now, in his mind.

"Didn't Leon give you medication for yours?" He opened a tired silver eye to stare blindly at the shadow hovering above him. How could Oz claim to see him in this darkness?

Ah, Oz concluded. So it was just as effective as his anti-nausea medication, which, while mitigated the effects, didn't eradicate them all. He sighed, getting up, almost forgetting his IV until the tube tugged at his arm painfully. He turned and fetched it before walking over to the sink, grabbing some much needed items.

"What did I tell you about that?" Law grumbled when Oz returned with the IV bag in his mouth again.

"Something about some nonsense." Oz shrugged, but put it back on the hook. "I  _only_  have two hands, you know."

"I can take it out." Law offered.

"Nah, it actually is making me feel better." Oz admitted as he reached around Law and found his discarded cloth, soaking it again in the basin Leon had left and, after wringing it out, placed it over Law's eyes. "Besides, you take it out in the state you are in? I think it'd be safer to amputate my arm."

"I could do that too, if you'd prefer it." There was a hidden secret in that quickly twitched smile. Oz was missing something, but Law didn't say anything more about it. Instead, the taller, skinny man sighed in his relief.

He was about to settle himself better, but Oz forced him to raise his head. He did so grudgingly but was rewarded with cool water to drink from the canteen that had been left by the sink.

"I'll leave this with you so I'm not forced to be your gofer again." Oz sighed as he even thought about climbing back up to the highest bunk. "I don't even think I  _can_  climb back up."

"The one above me is free."

"Definitely  _not_. You can easily reach that height merely by standing." Damn tall person.

"My migraines last anywhere from twenty to thirty-six hours. I might need you again if Leon is going to insist on this." He seemed pretty insistent on it too, from how fed up with the both of their attitudes he had proven to be.

"Yet here you are-  _talking_." He had valid points though. Damn doctor.

"I have a high tolerance for pain, but I'm not that stupid as to try to move more than I have to." If he could function during the worst phases of Amber Lead Syndrome, he could function during a simple migraine.

"Fine." Oz relented. "I will  _temporarily_  utilize the bunk above you until Leon returns. Then he will see how  _well_  we've gotten along and give up on making me suffer my abductor's presence any further."

"I did you a favor taking by you."

"You did  _yourself_  a favor by  _abducting_  me."

"Were you honestly happy there? Because you seemed miserable."

"I wasn't  _miserable_. I mean, I had the Bella women…"

"What attachments to that place would you have after they left though?" Law asked.

Oz blinked owlishly at him. He hadn't even thought about that. Didn't even know that they were opting to leave, unlike Law did apparently.

" _Obviously_  you couldn't return back to your monastery and that place would never fully accept you. I took you against your will, but you were too damn stubborn to leave- even if it was for your own benefit." Law rubbed his eye sockets irritatedly. Oz grabbed onto his wrists and pulled them away. That couldn't be good for the man. "Can we  _not_  talk about this when I feel every word slamming around in my head like a rubbery cannonball?"

"Sounds like the ideal time to me." Oz was still a little angry, despite the sense the other man made. "But I shall relent for now, seeing as you're a bear to deal with when so agitated."

"So the pot hasn't realized its the same as the kettle yet, has it?"

The mechanic listened to Law's words as he fixed the draped blanket, in case someone opened the door and light flooded into the room. Wouldn't do to have Law agitated with him over something so asinine. Oz picked up his IV bag one last time and reached to place it on the hook above. He had to stand on his tiptoes to even,  _barely_  reach it.

"It's pretending it's a different sort of pot at the moment. Nothing akin to the miserable kettle it's been stuck with. Though it wonders why its the pot and not the kettle in this analogy." He started to climb the ladder up the few steps to the next bunk.

"I'm surprised your stutter has vanished as have those pesky anxiety attacks of yours."

Oz shrugged despite Law not being able to see it. He plopped into the bunk wearily. His energy was dissipating by the second. "My current motion sickness is overriding my ability to give too many fucks simultaneously which shorts me out with unbridled anxiety."

Teisei had hopped up from the floor to join him in his bunk. He snuggled his not-as-fluffy-as-Law's-cat-is cat all the same.

"I'll write that down in your file as well then."

"Do you  _truly_  have a migraine?" Oz spoke that one louder.

" _Yes_." Law hissed at how loud his words are.

"Then shut up and rest, dumbass." Oz muttered as he curled up. His nausea was slowly coming back to the front of his attention now that he wasn't so busy tending to Law.

"You better hope I don't remember that later, ja." He honestly didn't remember some things during a migraine.

"I'll start praying for that now then." Oz promised.

He didn't really. He passed out from his own weariness.

* * *

When Oz woke up, he was not in the dark bunk. Instead, he was lying on a softer mattress and the room was painfully bright. He clamped his eyes shut to mitigate the pain of overpowering light against his sensitive retinas. Someone was sitting down on his bed, grabbing at his hand and pressing two fingers to his wrist.

"On a scale from one to ten, ten being the highest, how bad is your nausea, ja?"

Oz groaned as he thought about it and gave an honest answer. "Four."

"Good. You took a bad turn, my fault to be honest, and you were moved somewhere I could monitor you better and flush out the medication in your system."

"Y-you're such a-a liar. Tw-twenty hours my ass!" Oz tried hitting him, but his anxiety was flaring up. He had been out- honestly out. How long had Law been around him while he had been completely out of it. His head still felt so groggy. Did he say something about drugs?

"I started feeling better shortly after I had gotten sick and you tended to me, but normally they  _do_  last about twenty hours." He grabbed the hand the mechanic tried hitting him with and rubbed at his arm, where the IV had been. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do that to you. Your body didn't agree with the medication I gave you. I have made sure that it won't ever be administered to you ever again."

"You gave me a s-sedative?!" The victimized mechanic accused. That's the only way he could have moved him without stirring him. Oz was an extremely light sleeper.

"Only a mild one- to help you sleep off your motion-sickness better. But you reacted to it violently."

" _When_?" He would have noticed something in the IV after about an hour, but there hadn't been any sort of drowsiness or anything, so they had to have been given to him later- when Law could reach him.

"Shortly after you dozed off a bit, ja. Nice thing about IVs is I can add whatever I want via the port." Law admitted as he grabbed his stethoscope and put the buds in his ears and the diaphragm on Oz's chest. "Deep breaths, Oz-ya."

Even if Law had told him to, he couldn't. Oz realized for the first time that he wasn't in his coveralls and instead in a gown of some sorts. Someone had undressed and redressed the mechanic. Fear filled those canary yellow eyes as Oz looked up at the dark doctor before him. Law knew.

"We'll talk about it later. Deep breaths."

"I… I  _can't_ …" He knew. He knew. Heknewheknew _heknew_ ** _heknew_**.

" _Oz-ya_." Law had discarded the stethoscope and was forcing the shaking, hyperventilating mechanic up and into a similar position from the last time the poor thing had suffered an anxiety attack.

Everything Oz had worked at hiding. The very secret that the monks had warned him about. He had gotten sloppy. He had let his guard down and now here he was, abducted and stripped of all his privacies. How many more of his secrets would be laid bare? Would this terrible man force him to reveal all of them?!

Oz swallowed hard, clutching his arms around himself.

"Focus on breathing, Oz-ya." Law murmured lowly in Oz's ear and he kept strong hold of his patient. "No one else knows. Just Leon and I." And anyone with a nose strong enough to pick up the thicker smell of estrogen on the young mechanic, but admitting that wouldn't be help at the moment (and he had to talk to those two about keeping secrets like this from him). "He even gave me a serious earful about it too- if that makes you feel better."

Oz sobbed between hysterical breaths, trying to calm down, but also felt so frustrated and exposed.

"Oz-ya, how long have you been pretending to be a man?" Trafalgar Law didn't usually assume such things, seeing as there was such a thing as transgender people, but there were signs that the woman before him wasn't one.

She was still shaking and gasping for air, but she managed to speak. It almost felt freeing to finally admit it. "Si-since m-m-my ho-ho-home w-a-as de-des-troyed. Th-they were lo-oo-king f-for for me. Th-ey we-ere lo-ooking for a wo-woman."

She had begun to pass herself off as a teenage boy because her monastery,  _her home_ , had been burned to the ground a week after she had left- a week after the monks had told her the whole truth about why and how she had even come to them. The World Government's Cipher Pol were looking to restore what had been taken from them.

They wanted her back and nobody there could answer the reason why.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A short note to remind you why I do add some german words. I believe that, while there is that universal language that everyone is forced to know because of the World Government, some cultures still spoke their native tongue from time to time. I will try to hold true to that the best I can in my writing, but I will also try not to overpopulate the story with languages I and others may not speak. Mostly because I don't want to offend the languages by butchering it.
> 
> Du dummkopf: You stupidhead
> 
> Die Krankenstation ist zu hell: The infirmary is too bright
> 
> Ich werde mich benehmen: I will behave myself
> 
> Fünf Minuten: Five minutes


	6. Secrets Learned and Secrets Held

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own One piece, but I do own my ideas and my OCs

Law sat down again on the bed, this time with a mostly blank medical file. The woman actually utilizing the bed had finally calmed down enough that he decided to get this part done while Orpheus had been dismissed. The infirmary door was locked and if there was an emergency, Leon could deal with it.

"Name." He started with the very first blank on the page.

"Oz." She replied in a clipped tone. Her voice still quiet and ambiguous as it had always been. He was still annoyed he hadn't realized the truth sooner. He wondered when Leon had figured it out, but then again, Leon had always been more sensitive about these sorts of things. Hell, he would bet his hat that this had not slipped past Elias- the bastard. But the professional gambler had a nasty habit of keeping aces up his sleeve like this, despite constant warning about doing so.  _Old habits_ , Law reminded himself,  _that he has never managed to completely shake._

Somewhere in the back of his mind it occurred to him that a lot of his crew had some serious trust issues, including this woman, unofficial member of his crew or not.

He turned his head to stare at her. She glared right back, though her hand was shaking, giving away how much he actually intimidated her. "Really?"

She rolled her eyes and looked away. "Osprey."

He kept staring, a hint of disbelief in his stoic expression. " _Really_?"

"My caregiver's name was Crane." She told him irritatedly. "There was Master Hawk, Master Swan, Master Eagle-"

"Those were  _really_  their names?" He could not wrap his head around it.

"They were  _monks_." She was getting frustrated at his disbelief at her word. Her voice grew louder and for once, in a very long time, she spoke as she once did in the monastery. "They were known as the Birds from Paradise. They cast off their old names when they made their vows as monks- so yes, truly those are the names they went by! I was called Osprey. I shortened it to Oz because it was less suspicious after a whole bunch of monks  _named_  after birds were brutally murdered."

He stared at her for a moment longer before turning his grey eyes away from her and back to her future medical file. "Oz." He wrote it as he spoke it. She was ready to rip out  _his_  hair in her vexation.

"Age."

"Twenty-two and five months."

"I think I misheard you." He had thought her a young  _boy_. There was no way that she was-

"You didn't. You're embarrassed that you mistook me for a teenage  _boy_." She crossed her arms. She was still very furious with him and it was irking him how bold she got when her temper got the best of her.

"Thirty-six and eight-" He started to say, making the motions with his pen when, in fact, he wrote nothing.

"I said  _twenty-two_  and  _five_  months!" She grabbed for his hand to stop him. He turned and gave her a stern warning look and instantly she pulled her hand back and looked elsewhere.  _There_  was that skittish personality of hers.

He kept his eyes on her, but wrote down the correct age this time. She was simply a generous amount of months younger than him (not enough to be a year younger, but  _almost_ ). It was so strange, but her appearance, despite how chubby she was, made her able to pass as a younger boy. She was brilliant to play that card as well as she had.

"Gender?"

She gave him a tired, weary look. He rose his hands, the papers steadily gripped in his fingers as he spoke with mock civility. "I simply want to make sure that I am not misidentifying you if you see yourself as a man or as non-binary rather than a woman." If Leon could see how well his tact was getting, he'd praise him for sure. Or lecture him. One or the other.

"I assure you, I have never seen myself as anything but what I am." Oz shook her head at the idea. It might have taken her many years to realize that there was such a thing as multiple genders in the world, but being raised by men hadn't changed how she felt about being born a woman. The more time she  _spent_  with women, the more she liked  _being_  one. "I  _like_  being a woman, despite how little practice I have being one. If I could have gotten away with it, I would have loved to try one of those dresses Tabitha or even the Bella sisters owned, but I would have given myself away."

"You might have had problems fitting into their clothes as well." Law noted rudely, watching as her temper spiked.

"Breasts are  _hard_  to disguise when you are as generously  _endowed_  as I am, so, along with binding them the best I could, I used what I know of herbalism to slow down my metabolism and forced myself to pick up some weight. With how little my appetite actually is, I assure you, it was quite the feat. After that, I loosely bound my breasts enough to match the rest of my weight. Nothing too tight or I start having breathing problems."

Law scowled at her. "That is extremely dangerous and you could have really hurt yourself doing it." He couldn't even begin to tell her how dangerous every part of her plan actually was. It would only make him more angry at how belligerent she had been to her own well-being.

"You know what else is really bad for my health? Being hunted by the World Government for no known reason, being possibly tortured, being possibly murdered, being possibly  _raped_ , or, you know, being around  _you_. All of those things are bad for my health and yet  _you're_  the only one I failed to dodge entirely."

"It might explain your overwhelming anxiety attacks. You say it builds and overflows from time to time and that it only really started once you left the monastery? That was when you began to self-medicate, wasn't it? So even if you were naturally having anxiety over what had occurred, whatever herbs you were taking to slow down your metabolism could have magnified your stress to uncontrollable levels and skyrocketed your anxiety and paranoia. I will talk to Leon and see about getting your diet straightened out." Law began scribbling down a note to remind him of this issue to further investigate later with Leon.

"Wait. I'm sorry," her hands stopped him from his note making, "you make it sound as if I am staying on your submarine."

"That's because you  _are_  going to. Apparently, you're being hunted by the World Government and we're being hunted by the Marines- who, of course you know,  _work_  for the World Government." He shrugged nonchalant about the whole issue as he continued to write his note to himself. "I really don't see a difference. I already have a man wanted by the Underworld on my ship, having you will just make life a little more thrilling." He paused for a moment. "Your apology is accepted, by the way, ja. It's about time, I'd say."

He was lying, of course. Normally something like this would make him nervous and twitchy. He didn't like risk factors, not when they could throw off his perfectly laid plans for revenge, but he really hated letting go of those he had already decided were his to keep. He'd properly weigh the pros and cons later when the last of his residual migraine at last dispersed. Yet, from what he could glean at the moment, it was not like anyone searching for her even  _knew_  she was here or  _what_  she looked like. She had been remarkably good at keeping her head down. They were looking for a female monk (a trail that went cold when they had tipped her off to their search by burning her home to the ground), not a mechanic on a submarine- his submarine of all things (especially when no one really knew he  _had_  one just yet). It was honestly the best hiding place for her- especially if he removed her entirely from the area they were looking for her in: North Blue.

Not to mention that he wasn't entirely sold on how  _wanted_  she was if she didn't even have her own wanted poster out anywhere. They weren't above giving bounties to children or women, so it either meant that there was a  _very_  small search team with limited resources looking for her or she was a mistake they didn't want known by the rest of their organization. The Marines, in his experience, were trigger happy idiots who couldn't see what was right under their noses. Despite all of this, he, as a doctor, had this overwhelming urge to keep her under his authority simply so she wouldn't do such awful things to herself anymore, and the curiosity to know  _what_  would make her so significant that they would hunt her after all these years.

"No." She gave out a short bark of laughter at his words, pulling him from his racing thoughts. Her stomach was starting to churn violently the more upset she got. " _No_ , I'm getting off this damn submarine at the next port, do recall. I turned down your invitation- well in mind that I didn't want harm to come to your lovely crew because of me and, well, because I really, really,  _really_  don't like you. And I'm  _not_  apologizing. I have nothing to apologize  _for!_ "

"And we saw how well I adhered to your original rebuff. From what I could hear, it was a cry of help that I, as a doctor, couldn't ignore." Law pointed the tip of his pen at her, purposefully antagonizing her. "So you aren't apologizing? That's very confusing of you, Miss Oz."

"S-stop being facetious!" He was messing with her temper with his flippant behavior. "You know very well I was not apologizing a-and all of this is b-bullshit, you were mad because I turned you down and you don't take 'no' well, y-you spoiled  _child_." The room was starting to spin again.

" _Miss_  Oz, I am  _older_ than you. So perhaps it's  _you_  that's acting like a spoilt child? I will admit you're incredibly clever and perceptive, but your cowardly nature overrides your common sense time and time again. Being on board a submarine means continued ambiguity from-" He blinked, halting himself from his own lecture, as he noted her face's rapid change of color and quickly grabbed the clean bedpan from under the bed and thrust it into her hands just in time.

He crossed out the four on the sticky note on the front of her file. "I'm going to mark that down as you being up to an eight rather than a four."

"I'd prefer a nine." She muttered feebly as she set the pan on her lap. She leaned back against the headboard as she tried to will away the nausea. And she had been feeling better too.

He paused for a moment before deciding to skip to the ones he couldn't fill out without her. Because really, her energy was starting to fade. "Have you ever been sexually active."

"Oh yes, because I had time for all that between living at a monastery with monks who had taken a vow of celibacy and pretending to be a teenaged boy in a port full of illiterate idiots that were huge misogynists." She handed back the bedpan, but Law wasn't incline to take it from her, so back on her lap it went.

Her witty sarcasm was also completely wasted on him. He gave her a long stare, face completely schooled into one of perfect composure as he feigned ignorance to it. "I could write a 'maybe' if you want?"

"No, Trafalgar." She grumbled as she grew more irritated with him. "I have never been sexually active and I don't plan on it anytime in the near future."

"First of all, it's Captain to you. Unless you are Leon, who you are very much not, I shouldn't be hearing my name from your lips without a title attached to it- your two options are Captain and Doctor. Secondly, you really didn't plan on being on the Persephone, so maybe you shouldn't say things like 'plan' since yours don't seem to work out in your favor."

If looks could kill, they would have both struck each other dead. So, since lethal looks couldn't actually kill, the two of them were stuck in a stare down before Oz looked away. Law couldn't help the smug smirk that tugged on his lips. She had submitted.

"Doctor Trafalgar," Her previously hot-tempered voice had become so quiet and meek again. She pulled her arms close as she tried to make herself smaller. He almost clicked his tongue in his annoyance that she wouldn't call him Captain, but she had conceded to his will in her own rebellious way. "Are… are you going to tell the others?"

His irritation melted a bit as he glanced at her curiously, "Do you not want them to know?"

"I'd prefer no one knew. But that's not much of an option anymore." She shivered a bit and he reached over to check her temperature, noting how exhausted she looked. She flinched at how cold his hands were, but did nothing to remove them. He noted she felt warmer than most to him and made a note to monitor her temperature for the next few days.

Law observed her a bit longer, wondering how he had seen those gentle, rounded angles for anything less than feminine. What she had looked like prior to her foolish plan to pass herself off as a chubby boy? He mused this internally for a moment. Finally, he looked away, finishing up his notes in her medical file for the time being and rising from where he had sat on the bed.

"Rest for the rest of today, Miss Oz, and I will decide upon that before your check-up in the morning. I will be monitoring you from this point on as to not over-cumber Leon with responsibilities, though I do want you to continue your therapy sessions with him regardless." He glance down at her, noting how she was still sitting up and the worry in her eyes.

He heaved a sigh as he leaned in a bit, reaching out his hand to push her down, but those sharp eyes of hers caught onto something he had rather wished to keep from her. Her hand snatched his and she brought up his sleeve a bit to observe the fresh bandages around his forearm. "This is new."

Law clicked his tongue again as he pulled away from her. He was the doctor, not vice-versa. "Your cat didn't take well to me administering that sedative, nor did he like it when I realized you were having a bad reaction to it and needed to get you back to my infirmary."

"He bit you?" She sounded both surprised and worried.

"The first time was a scratch; the second, a bite, yes." He was a bit miffed. He hadn't been scratched or attacked by a cat in ages. "I've already treated it."

"But he  _bit_  you, yes?" Oz's eyes were looking up at him with serious concern. "You need him to lick it."

"That's highly unsanitary." Law frowned as he forced her to release his arm. "I have cleaned the wound and, if it does get infected, I will take care of it appropriately."

Oz fidgeted as she looked around. "You… didn't hurt Teisei, did you?"

Law's brows furrowed. "Over a bite?" He shook his head. "Oz-ya, I don't mistreat domestic animals if I can help it. I had to lock him in a room because of how aggressive he had gotten."

He would have said all animals, but as a young boy, he may have been a serial frog killer. There were also the lab mice and rats he tested on. Not to mention the goldfish with the nicotine. That one was always fun though.

"Then… could he… stay with me?" She whispered. "I feel better when he's with me. He makes me feel safe."

It suddenly hit Law that she was completely dependent on the big cat as a service animal. The large beast reduced her anxiety and made sure to comfort her when she was having an attack. He also defended her with a lethality that Law had not been expecting and, if he hadn't used Shambles to swap the cat with a pillow next door, the animal would have probably done more than scratch and bite at him. He was suspiciously a very big cat. Law vaguely wondered if he was entirely domestic or if he had some wild cat mixed into his genetics.

"Until you are feeling better, I feel safer treating you when he's not around. He has decided that I am a threat, seeing as the last time I applied anything, your body reacted poorly to the medication." Law explained, his arm was still quite sore from the bite, but it had been cleaned very well before he had wrapped it.

"I understand." Oz sounded very small again and made no eye contact. Her nausea was bothering her again, he realized, but until he was sure everything was out of her system, he didn't want to administer any amount of medication. She slowly lowered herself down in a lying position, placing the bedpan quietly on the ground as she did, face turned to him so she could keep an eye on him as he stayed in the room. "Make sure you let him lick it when he's less agitated though."

Law rolled his eyes. He was not going to let a cat lick his wounds. It went against every rule in his book about the hygienics of treating superficial wounds. However, he could see she wouldn't drop it until he agreed. "When he stops hissing at me, I will."

"I'll talk to him later 'bout it then."

"Hush. Talking is not resting, ja."

Law walked away and back to his small work desk in the infirmary, going over the very little he knew of the woman in his infirmary. He scowled at her mostly empty medical file and tried to ignore those yellow eyes boring into his skull as he pondered his choices.

Oz was an interesting woman and the mystery that surrounded her bothered him, but, at the same time, he knew that he had already decided she was going to be a part of his crew. Besides, Leon was already attached to her as were his mechanics- though they have yet been informed of their surprise, seeing as Oz was quite nauseous. He pondered if it  _would_  be a good idea if he really did keep her actual gender in confidence, especially since the men outnumbered her.

He didn't think a single one would raise a hand against her in  _anyway_ , not  _intentionally_ , but, it didn't mean they wouldn't get weird around her and ruin the good working relationship they had if they knew. He stared at her file a while longer before glancing at her, her eyes heavy lidded as she watched him distrustingly. He kept eye contact till she looked away. He glanced back down.

He needed her to cooperate, so perhaps he would humor her for awhile until he got her paranoia under control. He rubbed at his arm, trying his best to ignore how the bite itched, as he began to plot and plan once more over how he was to keep this mechanical genius on his crew.

Because honestly, as talented as Penguin and Shachi were, he had seen her notebook and she was much more talented. They could definitely use her, so now he had to convince her to stay.

That shouldn't be too hard…

He was Trafalgar Law, after all.

The man who would be Pirate King.

* * *

It was hunger that had caused him to leave the belly of the submarine. The others waved him goodbye, playfully wishing he'd remember them fondly as they labored on, while he slowly, tiredly, went to go fetch all their meals. They didn't have enough men yet to comfortably rotate so that all of them could have proper breaks and, though they would eventually fall comfortably into a three man routine, the first day or so after a dive required all four mechanics to be down there to monitor Persephone's engine.

He kicked his feet as he stuffed his hands in his pockets. He was still slightly disappointed that they hadn't gone up to a five man team, but Law hadn't managed to secure Oz. It was disappointing, but with how skittish the boy was, not surprising. Especially since he seemed downright terrified of their captain.

_Would it have killed Law to tone down on his sadistic nature? Just a mite?_ He mentally griped to himself.

Sure, Law liked to cut people open, and, yes, sometimes these people were alive, and maybe even conscious and possibly without painkillers. He didn't always put a gag in their mouth so their screams could be heard,  _sometimes_ , but it was  _never_  someone who was a member of his crew. They all had a permanent pass on that as well as some of the best healthcare hardly  _any_  gig could offer, pirate or marine or otherwise. Not that he had joined necessarily because he would never have to worry about affording medical bills. However, until people got to know Law as more than the exaggerated dark doctor people assessed him to be, the more timid ones were terrified of him- like Oz. He frowned as he kicked his foot at nothing again at the thought of the missed opportunity. He really was still disappointed about the kid. Damnit Law.

Heaving a sigh, he hoped the next island had a few more men competent with mechanics. Because a four man team was really not cutting it at all.

He continued his way quietly, eager to get his food, shovel it down his throat, catching up with his other crew members' day thus far, before grabbing the others' food and taking it back to them to eat between calibrations and adjustments. He would probably need to swing by the control room to make sure Bepo ate too- unless Law was there with him rather than tutoring Orpheus on different medical techniques, which he doubted.

He rounded the corner and instantly he was aware something was amiss. Orpheus, Elias, and even  _Basil_  were loitering outside the closed Galley door, each doing their own work. Orpheus was studying from a medical text, Elias was going over the budget  _yet again_ , and Basil was glancing over a cookbook. He paused and stared at the lot of them a bit puzzled.

"What's going on? Basil, shouldn't you be helping Leon with dinner?" He glanced at all three from under the rim of his hat. Confusion was evident in his face, but he had a sinking feeling that it might be the typical spat he had grown accustomed to witnessing over the years.

"Hey, Penguin. Mister Leon's in the middle of baking bread and I seemed in his way." Basil told him with a nervous look, his voice nothing but a whisper at that last clause. He glanced back down at his book and flipped through it nervously.

Penguin bit his lip. Leon baking bread was never a good thing. It meant that he was pissed and it was Law's fault. He glanced over at Orpheus to see what the medic-in-training had to say. It was partially his duty to keep Law in a good mood.

As if feeling Penguin's eyes on him, the younger man knew it was his turn to speak. "Captain dismissed me from the infirmary and locked the door behind him so Leon and I couldn't get back in. It's been locked for about four hours." Orpheus muttered with a huff as he kept reading his book.

Honestly, those two. He hated being the eldest sometimes.

"Let's not forget what caused all this." Elias added in a rather vexed tone as he fiddled with the numbers on his sheet, not even looking away as he spoke. "Law abducted Oz and that's mostly what all this nonsense is about. It's all been about the kid since this morning and I am damn tired to their bickering."

"Well, maybe if he hadn't abducted the poor kid, or  _those_ who had an inkling of what he was planning, had done something to prevent it, our day would have been infinitely more peaceful." Orpheus grumbled, turning the page of the medical journal with great agitation, as his insinuating words cast obvious blame towards Elias.

"Maybe if someone hadn't helped Leon  _hide_  Oz away from Captain and even roped his  _little brother_  into the scheme, perhaps  _he_  wouldn't have been punished like he had. And perhaps I could have kept my sanity by not putting up with Captain stomping around the halls like a petulant child looking for his damn new toy that was already misplaced!" Elias grounded out at first, but soon his words turned into yelling.

"Woah, woah, woah!" Penguin put himself between the two before they could get more than just passive-aggressive with each other. It was obvious they both were stressed out and Leon's nasty mood that was inadvertently keeping them from going into the galley to eat wasn't helping  _any_  of them. Orpheus didn't like being scolded by the Captain at all, even if he had been a willing member of the group keeping Oz away from Law. While everyone  _knew,_  due to Law making it  _extremely_  clear to  _all_  of them after Elias had joined that the man had a very strict eating schedule. He had to  _stay_  on schedule or he got extremely volatile and sometimes faint, and both Leon and Law got mad when Elias ended up on one of the infirmary beds because of such avoidable things. If Leon realized that his mood was causing Elias to outright avoid eating  _when he was supposed to,_  not only would he be angry at himself, but everyone else for not immediately trying to fix the situation. Elias. Had. To. Stay. On. Schedule. Rule number 5.

Honestly, Penguin thought he personally was doing a magnificent job at not smiling like a moron. Or smiling at all. His face was of the utmost professionalism. But seriously, he was so damn happy right now, hearing about Oz being on the submarine. Though right now, he couldn't celebrate the fact that Law had come through for them by giving them this wonderful gift. Egos were bruised and stomachs were empty, and Penguin was one of the very few people who could calm down  _all_  parties.

"Let me go talk to Leon and calm him down. Once he's calmer, I'll see if I can't get him to try to  _calmly_  talk to Captain. Depending on my results, if he goes, we'll grab what we can for dinner and hope he's in a good mood when he gets back. If not,  _I'll_  go talk to Captain about this all." Penguin calmly spoke, as if ready for the two before him to erupt into a screaming match. He hoped to pacify them because all of this animosity was looking like it was giving Basil too much stress, seeing as the kid was clutching tightly to his inhaler as he pretended to read the cookbook Leon had probably assigned him to become familiar with.

"Please do. I'm already thirty minutes off my eating schedule and my mood is dropping with my glucose levels." Elias sighed as he tossed his spreadsheet booklet to the side, abandoning the pretense that he had even been working on it and began to rub at his eye sockets agitatedly. His hands were already shaking.  _Shit_. Penguin had to go fix this now, less Elias's condition worsen. "I  _need_  to eat."

"He really does." Orpheus glanced over at the other man, slightly worried for him now that they weren't playing the blame game. Captain had warned him that Elias was a very special kind of type 1 diabetic with a predisposition for hypoglycemia, which meant him falling off his eating schedule could plummet his glucose levels down dangerously, despite his body's poor ability to create its own insulin. And, from the look of it, his levels were indeed already beginning to dip. Orpheus worried his lip with his teeth. He should have tried to be braver and gone to remind Leon of Elias's condition, but… his hands shook at the idea of even facing such wrath. He hated confrontation to the point of outright avoidance and Elias's condition suffered because of it.

"Alright." Penguin said calmly, changing up his initial plan. "Give me five minutes to at least get him to look at the time and make sure your taken care of, Elias. Do you have an emergency kit? Insulin?"

"I'm not... That's not how it even works! Insulin is for keeping your blood sugar levels from going over, not to boost them when their dipping too low." Elias grumbled, irritated with how many times he had to repeat that over and over to the others. It was irksome when others didn't understand such a common medical condition as they should have, especially since a type 1 diabetic was on board their own submarine as a crewmate. "I simply  _need_  to eat."

Penguin procured a granola bar he had in his boiler pocket. He had almost forgotten he kept the snack on him at all times. The older man proffered it to the slightly younger man. "Can you eat this?"

"That's not how diabetes works! Of course I can  _eat_  it! I'm having problems with  _low_  blood sugar levels right now, not  _high_. I  _need_  sugar, you-." Elias snatched it as he ranted, but he cut himself off before he looked ungrateful. He took a deep breath and forced his temper back down. "This it will help.  _Thank you_." He immediately unwrapped it and began to chew it with haste.

"Maybe you should have a snack or two on hand- just in case." Penguin calmly suggested, completely unperturbed by the near tantrum. Elias was nearly perpetually grumpy when he was feeling good, but he had a particularly nasty temper when he wasn't feeling well.

"I  _did_. I ate them when I felt my blood sugar levels dipping earlier. I'm not stupid. I've had this since I was a kid!" He ate snacks constantly throughout the day and he didn't always have enough to avoid stopping his work and heading over to the Galley for Leon-approved snacks. He had eaten his last snack this afternoon, seeing as backwater Roanoke Island didn't have prepackaged food and he couldn't restock his supply, and he was now wishing he had saved it… but he had needed it then.

"You really should just let Captain put you on an insulin pump." Orpheus sighed as he dug through his own pockets, recalling suddenly he had his own granola bar. How stupid was he that he had forgotten it? He tossed it Elias's way and the man snatched it and began opening that as well.

"Seriously,  _you_ of all people?  _Again_ , insulin-"

"One with a CGM." Orpheus interrupted, making himself better understood. "So we can be notified the moment your levels dip down to where you really  _do_  need to eat and then you wouldn't have to keep pricking your finger all the time or guessworking when you are running low on the test strips." Seeing as not every town had what he needed for his condition.

"I don't want it." Elias grumbled, taking another bite of his second granola, though he was a bit pacified that the medic-in-training actually understood his condition, unlike the mechanic. "I don't  _need_  it. At least not when my schedule isn't being fucked with. Besides, Law would have to find one  _with_  a CGM and that'd cost  _more_  money than we have to put towards such things at the moment."

"CGM?" Penguin's head spun a bit, not sure what they were even talking about.

"Continuous Glucose Monitor." Both told him gruffly, annoyed he'd even asked.

Penguin raised his hands in surrender, deciding it was best to stop conversing and work on getting Elias his dinner. He reached for the door handle, unsure of if it'd even open, but the galley doors adhered to his commands as he pushed the handle down and slightly opened the door. He was honestly a bit surprised at how easy they had opened. With the way the three of them had been acting, he had half suspected them locked. "What the hell guys, the doors aren't even locked. Elias, you could have gone in to get food from Leon at any time, you asshole."

"You can't taste his malice like I can." The bookkeeper mumbled with his mouth full of food, unrepentant for his bad manners.

"I'm sorry, what?" Penguin didn't really catch what he had said and was sure he had misheard.

"Leave me alone. I stand by my actions." Even if his hands were shaking and he was sure he couldn't stand up without getting dizzy, he was still unapologetic for staying in the hall over going in to get his dinner.

The oldest man within the crew didn't prod him further. Instead, he took a deep breath and walked into the room, door ajar and his eyes immediately landing on the chef as he aggressively kneaded the bread dough in his palms. Leon glances at him but his eyes were soon drawn back to his dough as he glared angrily at it. Both of them knew that Leon knew exactly what Penguin had come in there to do, but the elder of the five original members of the crew wondered fleetingly if the ex-gypsy had perhaps overlooked the time. It was known to happen when he was baking bread.

"Hey, Mama, your makeup's a little smudged around…" Penguin used a crooked finger on his own face to show Leon where to even look on his own.

The other man's hands instantly abandoned the dough as he grabbed for his compact mirror and had the thing flipped open, inspecting his face in a matter of seconds. When he realized he'd been had, not even a smudge of flour on his face to be mistaken for it, he turned his steely eyes onto the shorter man before him. He clicked his compact shut in a fluid snap, returning it back to its place in the front of his apron before turning to wash his hands now that he had touched something other than dough.

"Very  _funny_ , Pen." He grumbled, perhaps scrubbing his skin a little too aggressively under the hot water. He turned his head, raising his voice rather reprimanding as he reached for his drying towel. "And what have I told you about that damn nickname? I am  _not_  your mother, dammit. I'm not  _anyone's_  mother. Not here, not back then-  _never_."

"Keep telling yourself that and maybe one day someone other than yourself will believe that. Anyways, you were going to ignore me, so I played a bit dirty." Penguin shrugged before leaning his elbows on the counter that separated the kitchen from the galley. "What's worse,  _Mama_ , is while you're being angry at your petulant child, who has, no doubt, deservedly earned your ire; your other  _good_  children, all of whom have abusive pasts and get anxious around angry men, are sitting in the hall too nervous to come in and eat." He motioned his head at the galley's clock. "Look at the time."

Leon did and he swore under his breath. He tossed the towel back to its place as he abandoned his kitchen and quickly made a beeline to the galley door, throwing it wide open. "All of you, in here,  _now_.  _Especially you,_  Elias!"

The three of them entered warily, but Leon wasn't stewing in his anger at that moment, instead he looked absolutely worried, so it bolstered their resolve to obey. He was giving Basil quick orders to get their meals served up while he began to fuss over Elias, who entered last and had his hands shoved into his pockets to keep their trembling hidden. Not that it really worked, since the chef could easily spot the signs of his low blood sugar levels.

"Basil, get Elias's first." Leon called over his shoulder before he began to push at the other man towards a seat at the nearest table. Orpheus was already at the table and pulling out a chair for the diabetic man to sit at.

Penguin would have normally found it hilarious watching chef motherhenning the grouchy bookkeeper, seeing as, currently, Elias was their second tallest crewmate (Bepo towered over them all and loved to use his height for sneaky bearhug attacks from which there was no escape), having about 4 cm on Leon as he stood at 6 foot 7. However, the fact that he wasn't necessarily steady on his feet indicated he was too far off his eating schedule for two smashed granola bars to fix. That sobered the mechanic's humor. Penguin could easily tell that the motherly chef was doing an excellent job at internally berating himself for having slipped up so badly. If Law saw this, he'd be right there with Leon, fretting over the man's condition. He'd be angry at all of them for letting it happen, though he would be kicking himself the most because it was his argument with Leon that eventually caused this- if he were here to witness this, that is.

The moment that Elias had eaten some of his food and had enough energy to start batting away Leon's worrying hands, grumbling about being fine, Penguin decided that it was time to try to mend the rift between the captain and his first mate. He grabbed on to the man's shoulder and gave him a tug, encouraging him away from the aggravated diabetic.

"Come on, Mama, time to go deal with your other problem child and to leave this one in the capable hands of your other dependable kids." Penguin coaxed him towards the galley's exit to have him confront Law about whatever they were arguing about.

"Stop calling them my children! None of them are my children and I'm  _not_  their mother!" Leon complained as he was tugged away. He looked half torn about staying to monitor the bookkeeper a little longer, but Orpheus was there and was clearly observing the man.

Elias looked at Orpheus from his spot, fork still in his mouth as he spoke around it. "Looks like Mama doesn't love us anymore."

"I don't understand it. Basil and I are such good sons." Orpheus played off of the comment well as he sat next to Elias with his own dinner plate. His voice serious sounding as he spoke each word with false sincerity. "Basil especially doesn't deserve to be abandoned by his mother."

Leon lost all ability to even talk. His mouth opening and closing as he stared with the look of utter  _betrayal_ by the young man's witticism. Penguin had to choke back a laugh, seeing as it wasn't often that the young medic-in-training teased others. He only did once he felt comfortable enough with them, which it seemed he had finally become within their presence.

Elias had no such inhibition about laughing though, almost choking on the food he had in his mouth as he gave the younger man an approving glance.

"Brother, Mister Elias, leave Mister Leon alone." Basil pleaded meekly, bringing his own plate as he sat next to his brother.

" _Thank you_ Basil." Leon glowered at the other two before glancing once more at the youngest. He began to dole out instructions to his immediate underling. "I am going to go with Penguin to see if Law's managed to dislodge that stick he has up his ass, so, as soon as you're done with dinner, please take the other mechanics their meal. I don't know how long it will take and those three  _have_  to be getting hungry. And Bepo as well, but leave out the fact that Law and I are-"

"Bickering again?" Penguin supplied with a roll of his eyes.

"Yes." The chef gave him a frown but didn't try to make them believe that's not what was going on as he continued on in his instructions. "Cover Penguin's food but keep it warm until he gets back from assisting me with this. I also have some dinner for Law and Oz ready to be served. Wait about half an hour after Penguin returns with news of either our success or failure and either you or Orpheus bring it to the infirmary."

"Of course, Mister Leon!" Basil agreed eagerly, beaming at the chance of being useful. Leon gave him an approving nod before he finally let Penguin cow him out of his galley.

"Mama's boy." The tallest of the three left in the galley accused the smallest, now that Leon was out of earshot.

"Leave my little brother alone." The medic-in-training narrowed his eyes at the bookkeeper.

"Little Brother complex."

Elias wasn't the even a bit surprised when the next time he had to get his blood drawn that Orpheus 'accidentally' missed his vein  _five_  times before the needle actually  _did_  accidentally break under his skin. A very sore arm, an emergency 'Room' operation, and a mildly perturbed Law fussing at him later, that comment was still worth it.

* * *

Orpheus had not been exaggerating when he reported that Law had locked everyone out, sans Oz and himself, of the infirmary. The red light by the door, which was to  _only_  ever be flicked on when in surgery, was off though, so it meant that knocking on the door and perhaps calling through the two way intercom was at least permitted. Law actually letting them in, was an entirely different story, however. He had once locked himself in there for five days for a project and, only because Leon had the forethought of him having a mini-fridge filled with easy meals that could be consumed cold and a stash of bottled water in the cupboard above, did their capitan not starve or die of dehydration. Though Leon had been pissed still because not enough food had been consumed from that fridge to fill each meal time for five whole days.

Penguin held no reservations about pressing the intercom button the moment they got within reach while Leon had seemed a bit hesitant. He seemed concerned for Oz, but the residual anger towards Law from earlier that day still boiled his blood a bit. With the button pressed, Penguin called out for their captain and release the intercom to wait for a reply.

A minute went by. Nothing.

Penguin looked at Leon. "You sure he's in there?"

"Oh, I'm more than sure."

"Are we sure the door is still locked?" Penguin reached out and attempted to open the door. Locked as was promised to him.

"Yup." Leon purposely popped the p as his lips twisted further down into a displeased frown, arms crossed in front of him as his mood slowly returned to prior. Penguin had a feeling that bread dough he had rescued had not seen its last kneading session.

Penguin remained calm and pressed the intercom button again. "Hey Captain, Leon's with me. I heard about earlier and we just wanted to come in and have a chat about it."

He released and waited. Two minutes. Nothing. He glanced at Leon as the other man slowly began to clutch at his on biceps in an attempt to remain even tempered. "Are we sure Oz didn't manage to lock him out?"

Leon casted him a glance that told him not to be stupid. "He can practically warp into any room he wants with relative ease now- how would that keep him out?"

"Hmmm." Penguin put his hand to his chin. He had definitely forgotten about that. Law still forgot that too when he was too startled that he could warp, since he tried not to overuse his powers when he could help it. While he had obtained a lot more energy to use them than when they were kids, overusing his powers caused him to get dizzy or have a bad headache or even a migraine depending, and, sometimes, when he completely overtaxed himself, he'd fall feverish, which nobody ever was happy about since his immunity system was already so horrid.

"Okay." Penguin nodded as he decided their next action. He glanced at Leon, rolling up one of his sleeves to above his elbow. "Do you have anything out here to stitch up a deep cut?"

"What?! No! I don't carry more than a basic first aid out of the infirmary!" Leon looked very perplexed at the disquieting inquiry as his spine stiffened. His eyes glinted as he came to a frightening conclusion. "Penguin don't you dare try to-"

Before he could even try to plead for the eldest to not do anything stupid, Penguin whipped out his pocket knife, blade flawlessly flipping out with practiced ease and attempted to stab his own arm, just for Leon to catch his wrist and stop him temporarily.

"No!" Leon shouted. "Don't you dare!"

Penguin struggled a bit, Leon definitely had a strong grip, but he wasn't a pushover in raw strength either, so Leon had yet to disarm him, though he was trying. Years of sparing with each other made it a difficult feat for either of them in accomplishing their own goals. Just to drive up Leon's anxiety, the mechanic cackled as he continued to try to force the knife into his own arm.

"But he'll have to let us innnnnn!" He tried twisting about to loosen the chef's grip, but Leon held on. He grunted in Penguin's ear as he somehow ended up clutching onto Penguin from behind.

"Law!" Leon shouted, his head turned a bit so he wasn't shouting in Penguin's ear. Ah, he must have managed to press the intercom somehow while they were struggling. "Let us in! Pen is being a lunatic and trying to  _stab himself_  just to get in!"

Penguin let out a well placed maniacal cackle, using Leon's distracted pleads to further edge the knife closer to his skin. "Come on! I just cleaned the blade earlier this week and, besides, I'm only going to cut deep enough to need a few stitches, like  _ten_  or something. Then he'll  _have_  to let us in!"

"No!" Leon managed to pull the knife away a bit, but still hadn't managed to get it out of his grip yet. "Stop Pen! This isn't funny!"

"It's not supposed to be funny!" Penguin gritted his teeth as he struggled to keep hold of his knife. He didn't want to lose complete control of where he was stabbing and with Leon yanking at his weapon, it was making it harder to control just where it'd cut him. He really didn't want to hit a main artery and bleed out. "We're locked out. We need to get in and  _this_  is the best way of-"

Suddenly he was being teamed up against and Law was now pinning him to the opposite hallway wall while Leon finally had enough leverage to make him drop his pocket knife. Penguin instantly wrapped his legs around his captain since the other man was pinning both his arms with his and pressing his torso into Penguin's to prevent him from struggling, not that he was anymore.

"Hey there Captain!" Penguin chirped pleasantly as he observed his disheveled leader. His grey eyes were wide and his breathing was a little ragged as he stared bewildered at Penguin. "You weren't responding, so I figured maybe I should give you some reason to come out."

"Are you  _out of your mind_!?" The surgeon began, trying now to disentangle the mechanic's limbs from his torso to get some distance between the two of them. Perhaps as a way to regain his authority as captain of the submarine once more, but this time, the eldest had a point to make. Penguin wrapped his legs around him tighter and now wrapped his arms around his neck. "Let go of me!"

While Penguin obeyed his captain's demands to a point, dropping his feet back down onto the floor as he started to unwrap his arms from around his neck, he quickly latched his dexterous fingers onto the golden earrings in Law's left earlobe and yanked. With his other, he managed to grab Leon's earrings too and did the same. It had been the only way, sometimes as kids, for him to gain the upper hand on the two more powerful boys.

"Gah!" Both men grunted as they unwillingly lowered their heads to ease the pain. They winced and gritted their teeth as they both held back from breaking Penguin's hold. Penguin hardly ever pushed around his weight as the eldest, often acting as childish as Shachi tended to be, but he would break from his role as the playful older brother when the two of them were acting unreasonable. So, when he did such a thing as this, they both knew it was well deserved. No matter how much of a blow it was to their dominant personalities to cow to someone who'd rather take orders than lead.

"Your bickering is causing everyone anxiety." Penguin cut to the heart of it, his voice no longer jovial but instead stern and reprimanding. "So you need to talk it out,  _like the_ _ **responsible**_ _adults you are_ , so that your sour moods aren't causing every other person outside the engine room to hide. If Bepo had seen you two act like this as Elias, Orpheus,  _and_  Basil had, he would have started crying. One warning. Knock. It. Off." He yanked on Law's earrings, causing the taller man to grunt as he gritted his teeth. "You are the captain. We all agreed on that when we formed this crew, but you need to  _act_  like a captain, not a tyrannical, manipulative ass. You're better than that and by acting like that, you are no better than the people you hate." He then turned to Leon and yanked on his earrings receiving a similar reaction from the other tall man. "And you have always been the parental figure, you need to be nurturing and a rock to  _everyone_  on this vessel. Your pissy mood affects everyone even more than  _his_. You are the first mate as to keep him in line when he goes overboard, but you also need to respect that Captain will always have  _our_  best interest in mind, more so than his own, which, again, is a part of  _your_  duties as First Mate. You need to butt out when it's obvious he's got something handled, not try to play some silly game of keep away to punish him." He tugged on both their earrings and this time they grabbed at his wrists to try to make him stop because it was starting to hurt. "Now,  _talk_  like  _adults_. I have been gone way too long from the engine room and yet had time to  _eat_. If I hear that you two squandered this chance to reconcile, I will do more than tug on your earrings a few times to make you see the error of your ways. Got it?"

"Got it." Both grunted and Penguin released them.

Law was the first to complain, hand to his earlobe. "I did not get earrings so you could tug so carelessly on them." He pulled his hand away inspecting it for blood.

"Oh? But you got them to be tugged on, albeit not carelessly?" Leon was doing the same with his hands. "Strange, I got  _mine_  because it was a part of my heritage, culture, and upbringing. I had thought yours similar."

"I got mine to be 'rebellious and disreputable looking'. 'Cheap thug', if I recall your original words."

"Right, because you are convinced it makes you look like a sauve badass when all it does is scream 'help, I need to stand out as an individual in order to hide my insecurities about myself'."

"And my 'standing out' is any worse than your obsessive need to 'blend in', ja?"

"At least I don't pretend that tacky spotted jeans are fashionable."

"And men who wear gaudy flowery jewelry around the brim of their hats like yours are?"

"I  _just_  released you both and you're bickering already?" Penguin practically had to jump between the two of them before either one could devolve to fisticuffs- which had happened  _way_  too much when they had been boys.

"He started it." They both chorused, looking surprised at each other's tandem remark.

"I don't care!" Penguin screamed at them. "I practically told you two to kiss and make up and you start bickering over something like this?! How am I and Shachi more childish than you two?!"

He made a motion as if he was about the grab them by their earrings again and the two practically flinched away from him. That must have diffused their aggression, Penguin realized, as they both quieted and looked at each other, casting a quick glance at him as if worried he'd still try to make a grab at them. Their irritation with each other practically dissolved right then and there when they realized they were arguing over the pettiest of things. Things they usually teased goodnaturedly about after Law managed to wrangle his coffee from Leon's reluctant fingers.

"You're right." Leon was the one to admit it, his shoulders slumping a bit as he no longer looked ready to try to deck Law. "I'm being childish." He lifted his hat long enough to run the fingers of his free hand through his hair before resettling the fedora. His grey eyes were now observing Law's. "You still have a bit of your residual migraine headache, don't you?"

"It's tolerable." Law mumbled as he looked away, the tension in his body loosened as well.

" _Finally_." Penguin muttered as he took a few steps from between the two. "Now behave! I have to go grab my lunch and eat it down below now thanks to you two." As he began to head back towards the kitchen he let out one last shout. "Stop making me be the responsible adult! That's you two's job!"

"It's everyone's job toberesponsiblemembersofthis- and he's gone." Leon rubbed his brow with his fingers. "But in all seriousness, couldn't he act like a damn adult more than when we are not getting along?"

Law looked tired, those deep circles under his eyes still prominent even after most of his migraine had dissipated. Despite this, the expected sass dutifully came from his mouth. "But then who'd lead the other mechanics in a foolhardy mission to get completely wasted onshore and stumble back with them at two in the morning and wake us all up from our slumber, of which I had probably only managed to settle into, with loud off-key native Swallow Island chanteys that only he and Shachi know  _most_  of the words to, ja?"

"That's the beauty of it, Law.  _No one._ "

The look on Law's face proved that notion to be a foreign concept to the man. "I would have to witness this firsthand before being able to grasp this concept you are trying to present. Until then, it sounds like the ravings of a mad man."

"You have no right to talk." Leon found it within himself to laugh and he cuffed Law's shoulder gently.

The other looked at him, a serious expression rather than his faux laidback one. "I will assume we have come to terms with our  _slight_  against each other?"

The chef heaved a heavy sigh as he forced himself to nod. This was as close to an apology either of them would ever get. The two of them had long since come to terms that it was hard for either of them to apologize to the other- so they didn't. They didn't need apologies after all they had gone through together anyways.

"Would you be against me checking on Oz now that you've no longer barred the two of you in the infirmary?"

"I'm certain Oz-ya would infinitely prefer your company to mine." Law nodded, eyes closed for that moment before falling back onto the older of the two. "I understand what's been going on and have yet to make a final decision, but before I do, I want to talk to Elias about a few things."

"He's in the cafeteria with Basil and Orpheus. You can probably use the excuse that you want to check on him. His sugar levels dropped pretty significantly." Leon admitted a bit abash. "It seems my foul mood with you might have… it kept them from coming in at dinner time and it kept me from realizing what time it was."

The dark doctor's eyes widened a bit, but his first mate quickly quelled his worries. "I stayed with him until he wasn't shaking or dizzy, but it'd be nice if you give him a once over. You can determine his exact levels much faster than anyone else can with better precision."

"Alright." Law was turning to go grab his bag before heading over to the galley. He was suddenly worrying about the bookkeeper, as he often quietly fretted over any of them when their health took any sort of dip. "Then perhaps I can request you properly fill out Oz-ya's medical file while checking up on the brat." In a much quieter voice, as if expecting someone to eavesdrop and hear things not meant for anyone outside the two of them, he proceeded. "Ask her about her self-medicating teas and poor binding techniques and see if you can't convince the stubborn woman what she's doing in both regards is asinine."

Suddenly, if Law hadn't been so focused on getting over to checking on Elias, despite what the older man had told him, he would have enjoyed how positively livid the maternal man got. He half-wished he could stay and watch that stubborn brat of a woman get the scolding of her life from the one man she was probably not expecting it from. Served her right and, with Leon's help, she would be able to reduce a lot of her anxieties and paranoia- though he was not about to abandon the responsibility of being her doctor completely to Leon. No. He was going to keep close tabs on her from this point on, seeing as she could be so belligerent to her own bodily needs.

He managed to give her a self-satisfied smirk as her eyes quickly met his before he slipped out of the infirmary with his bag in hand, closing the door just before Leon's voice could boom with the opening lines of his 'What the hell were you even thinking?' speech. He had heard enough variations of it to know that she'd be regretting it quickly enough.

The walk to the galley was quick, seeing as everyone who might have stopped him along the way there was already sitting within the room, keeping an eye on the very man he was coming to check on. The two brothers glanced at Law, but did little other than return back to their separate readings, a slight tension filling their forms.

"Orpheus, you have the rest of the night off." Law cut the young man off before he felt too injured by his words. "Oz-ya is getting better, but right now is ensuing some of Leon's wrath for… some private matters."

Elias caught the corner of Law's eye as he let out an almost unseen huff of humor at the dark doctor's words. Law did his best not to look in the bookkeeper's direction or narrow his eyes. So the bastard did know. Typical.

Orpheus, on the other hand, relaxed considerably as he understood that he wasn't being punished further for his earlier actions. Not that earlier had even been a real punishment, but there was that fear of the young man's slipping past his common sense. Law, as his captain and doctor, decided to fix that misunderstanding. "I wasn't punishing you earlier either. Oz-ya's sudden condition was my fault and I needed the room to myself to concentrate better, ja. When you are more experienced, I will be depending on you more, Mister Orpheus. However, until I have decided you have enough training, I will tend to patients by myself or with Leon."

"Yes Captain." Orpheus nodded slowly.

With that solved it was time to move on. "Basil."

"Yes Captain?" The younger brother practically jumped out of his seat to stand at attention to the older man.

Law let out a chuckle, amused a bit by how hard the youngest member of their crew tried, before speaking a bit less sternly. "Bepo has been by himself for too long, no doubt, and needs some company. Why don't you take him his meal and chat with him a bit, ja? So he's not so lonely."

"Yes Captain!" Basil nodded eagerly, happy to be of assistance. "Mister Leon wanted me bring you and Oz your meals in about ten more minutes, shall I set up your meal to eat now and Oz's for when you return to the infirmary before taking Bepo's his?"

Law nodded approvingly as he took off his hat and tossed it onto the vacant spot on the table next to where Elias was finishing up his food. The taller man ignored him as he sat next to him, Basil already bringing him his food in that short time before retreating to get Oz's ready for transport after Law was finished with his business here.

"I heard rule number 5 was broken." Law calmly spoke as he started conversation with his current patient, taking hold of Elias's free wrist and putting two fingers to his pulse.

"Only by thirty minutes." Elias waved off the concern with his free hand. He dared not pull away when Law had him in his hold, it only caused him more problems vexing the dark doctor.

"He was getting dizzy to the point that he was almost leaning his complete weight on me walking to the table, Captain." Orpheus decided to butt in. "His hands were shaking violently as well. Penguin and I managed to give him two granolas, but, honestly sir, I didn't even think of my spare snack until after Penguin offered him his and it was already way off his eating schedule."

"Snitch." Elias growled as he sat up straighter, reminding the younger man that  _he_  was  _bigger_  and more  _threatening_  than gangly, studious Orpheus.

"Thank you Mister Orpheus." Law smirked as he eyed the man before him. "I doubt Elias was going to proffer any of that himself."

"Of course Captain." Orpheus smiled brightly at the praise.

Elias scowled at him. "Don't you have the 'rest of night off'? Go be teacher's pet elsewhere."

Orpheus scowled at him in return, but before he could fire off his retort, his younger brother was tugging at his shoulder. "Brother, why don't you come with me? I'm not as interesting at conversation as you are and besides, you spend more time with Captain during the day and Bepo likes to hear about Captain's day more than mine or yours."

"Not that we really were together much today, but if Captain allows, I can perhaps mention Mister Oz's indefinite stay with us?" He glanced at his superior with a tentative expression, unsure of if that was information their captain wanted everyone to know just yet.

"Ja." Law moved his fingers away from Elias's wrist and started digging into his bag. "Bepo would like that. Just leave out…" He trailed off purposely, focusing more on the items he was pulling out of his bag. Law was setting up a device, one everyone in the room quickly recognized as one of the few test kit meters they had, with a fresh test strip before moving onto setting up a clean lancet to prick his finger. Elias gave a exasperated huff, but offered out his hand closest to the doctor palm up.

"Just leave out  _how_  we managed to get him on the submarine, yes, Captain, I figured." Orpheus finished for him. "No mention of the him being sea-sick?"

"I'll leave that up to your discretion, Mister Orpheus."

"Yes Captain."

Basil quickly went back to the kitchen, coming out one more time with a tray before setting something down close to Trafalgar's elbow, but far enough away so he wouldn't accidentally knock it over. He still had a warm meal sitting on the tray- Bepo's no doubt. "That's all Leon wanted Mister Oz eating with his stomach as queasy as it is."

"Thank you Basil." He pricked Elias's finger as the other man kept eating the last vestiges of his meal and easing a drop of blood onto a strip of paper.

"See you later, Captain." Basil nodded and he with his brother disappeared out of the galley.

As soon as the two were out of earshot, Elias spoke up. "Don't listen to that brat. If I had been leaning my complete weight on him, you know I would have caused him to collapse underneath it. He can't support my weight- not with that scrawny body of his."

"I figured as much myself, Elias, but do remember he is infinitely better now than when we took him and his brother in, ja. One day he will be able to easily support your full weight. It will just take more than a month or two to do so."

Law slid the meter over to Elias without looking at the rests. The diabetic rolled his eyes, but covered it with his palm nonetheless. "This game again."

"It's not a game." Law huffed as he held his palm up and concentrated. "Room."

A whirl of blue formed in the palm of his hand and the doctor focused on expanding it to where both he and his patient were within its area. Elias didn't even blink at the occurrence and instead focused on the last bit of his food.

His eyes were closed as he focused harder. "Scan."

The two were left in silence for a moment before Law opened up his eyes and quickly checked the results on the meter. His eyes narrowed as he thinned his lips into a subtle frown.

"Still not getting it?" Elias easily concluded.

"I was completely off. I'm guessing based off experience more than knowing because I can sense it." He admitted, the blue glow around them fading away to nothing, as he began to clean up his tools to be put away in their proper place in his bag.

"Are you even sure you  _can_  'Scan' a person and understand their intricate vitals like blood sugar levels? It sounds pretty tedious."

"In theory, if I can 'Scan' a person and know what items they have hidden away on their person, I should be able to refine it to the point that I can scan  _them_  in their entirety."

"That'd be convenient. And perhaps save a lot of money spent on test strips, though, not entirely since that'd be foolish of me to ever be caught alone without one." Elias admitted before picking up his beverage and taking a slow slip with a thoughtful expression. "I wonder if that could even be applied in deducing if your target is a devil fruit user or not."

"Perhaps." Law mulled over the idea, but he shook his head in defeat as he ran a hand through his hair, "but as of now, I care barely sense more than a heartbeat from you. And, despite being aware of your condition, I can't sense anything with my technique."

"Well, imagine when you get it right one day and  _knowing_  when there is a woman among your crew despite her boyish appearance."

"So you  _did_  know." The dark doctor did he best not to sound too angry, but damn this mulish man.  _He,_ Trafalgar Law, was the captain of this vessel and  _Elias_  was his  _subordinate_. He should have reported it to him as soon as he had known.

"Naturally. I knew the moment the brat stepped into the door that stormy night." Elias admitted both arrogantly and grouchily. "And it's been nothing be a thorn in my side since you…" He quickly pondered a good word for the situation, "confided her  _indefinitely_  within my proximity."

"Why didn't you mention it  _earlier_."

"I didn't actually think you could convince the little mouse. And what business was it of ours if she didn't end up joining?" Elias shrugged, turning his head so his ocher colored eyes were looking straight into Law's grey ones. "Besides that I am not that sort of man to tell a secret I have no business knowing about some individual that's  _barely_  a concern of mine. It was obvious it was a secret for a reason- not even the Bella women knew and I  _did_  probe them a bit about it. Her landlady too. That wicked old Bella might have known, but she had a gun and she's too wily to fall for my charms- so I didn't even bother with her. Besides, do I really have to report  _everything_  I pick up on? Like perhaps what sort of things arouse Miss Notte or makes Miss Soleil sigh in delight?"

Law rubbed his temples as his anger deflated a bit. He was still frustrated, but Elias would be chatting in his ear nonstop if he had to honestly report  _every_   _single_  thing he picked up on. The only time Law really wanted to know was when said person was a target of theirs and Oz could barely be called a target to someone like Elias. Though it wouldn't hurt if he had enlightened Law to this important tidbit a  _lot_  earlier. Not that it would have changed much.

"You should have told me as soon as you knew I was interested in recruiting Oz-ya."

"Why? It wouldn't have change much at all," he shrugged off the complaint. "You'd still wanted to have recruited her; I'd still have had to figure out how to properly put her on the payroll without us going broke because  _someone_  insists on  _paying_  the crew rather than hoarding the money like every other pirate captain; she still would have told you no; and you still would have woken me up at three o'clock in the  _morning_  to spirit her away with us against her will."

Law stared at him with blatant irritation at the man before him. "You neglected to tell me because I a) made you do your job and b) woke you up early to avoid paying half our fees?"

"And c) you proceed to annoy the shit out of me by calling for your cat for the next few hours as you looked for both the girl and that beast of yours." Elias hissed in his own annoyance. "I'm already in a shitty place because you wanted her and then you had to add all that on top of it."

Law's body language changed discreetly from irritation to mild concern. The shift was so small, that it was only due to Elias's keen eye from years of being an adept poker player did he even see it. Trafalgar Law didn't give much away in that regard when he could help it. "I didn't even think about that, ja. Will this cause problems?"

"Tch." The other man gave him a sour look, but then waved it off the concern. "It was bound to happen, do recall. We were never going to be an all male crew- thank Lady Luck for that. It simply happened sooner than I was prepared for. There might be a few hitches, but nothing I can't work around."

Law nodded his understanding before turning to his meal and slowly picking up his utensils to poke at it. "Well, it seems that you are fine. Next time don't let yourself fall off your eating schedule, even if Leon and I are not in the best of moods. Also, keep me informed if you begin having any sort of issues."

With a solemn nod, the accountant turned his attention back to his paperwork now that his hands weren't shaking and the room was no longer subtly spinning. The two sat in the room in comfortable silence as Elias worked and Law continued to pick at his meal.

"Leon sees you picking at your food with no intention of eating it, he'll get angry." The other man reminded him.

With a sigh, Law took a few bites before giving him a look. It wasn't that he had no appetite, but his mind was still running a thousand miles in each direction with his residual headache still thrumming in the back of his head. He had a lot of decisions to make and all of them came with consequences.

One thing was for certain though. He was keeping Oz as a member of his crew. Even if he had to coerce her into it, he'd figure out her weak point and use it to his advantage. But there were still so many other decisions to make and people to be affected based on how he chose to go about keeping her residence here on his submarine.

He took another bite of his meal and another as his mind continued its plotting, slowly each decision being weighed against one another until he knew what he wanted to do.

"Does Bepo know?" Law finally spoke, setting his utensil aside and turning to look at his sole companion in the kitchen.

"Indeed he does, but don't worry, I did you a favor and dealt with it. Though, if you are going to tell everyone  _else_  about Oz, then you might want to set the record straight." Elias flipped through his papers, not once looking away from it.

Law pinched his fingers against the bridge of his nose as he tried not to be too frustrated. Knowing Elias and how gullible Bepo could be, it was probably something outrageous simply because Elias knew he could get away with it. "I'll talk with him, but for now, mum's the word about Oz-ya's… condition."

"I deduced as much." Elias nodded. "Those idiots finding out will turn their brains to mush around the brat, which breeds poor productivity."

"And you'll manage?"

"Yeah. I'll manage."

With that, Law got up, grabbing onto the thermos with Oz's meal and began to make his exit. "Best go save Oz-ya from Leon then."

"Best you do."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: So, sorry it takes me forever. I would like to thank BloodyMarryMe for all her support and she even did me a favor and read through this for glaring mistakes! And I would also like to thank Elielephant for her wonderful suggestions. I have been posting the more edited version of my story here, but it seems this one really didn't need to be touched too much. Huzzuh!
> 
> So I have answered a few of your questions probably about Oz and her mystery and then started to show that, in this crew, there are still a lot of secrets to be had. Time will reveal these mysteries, feel free to try and guess them, and I might tell you if you are on the mark.
> 
> Until then, thanks for your patience, I hope you enjoy!
> 
> Please tell me what you think as well in the comments below. They feed my muse and in return she comes back from her wandering to give us all more of this wonderful world!
> 
> Also, let me know who your favorite OC is thus far. I'd love feedback on them as well!
> 
> Till next chapter!


	7. Breakfast at Persephone's

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own One piece, but I do own my ideas and my OCs

Waking up and jolting upwards, drenched in sweat with heart hammering in his chest, hardly passed his thoughts as an abnormal occurrence. If it had been anyone else, he would have been lenient towards them and encourage trying to sleep again once they had calmed, but he offered no such kindness to himself. Extracting himself from the sheets that had twisted around him like a trap, he stumbled a bit across the room for the door out. Before he got too far from the bed, he grabbed his hat from the bedside table and stuffed it on top of his bedhead. With that done, he continue his quest towards the door. He needed air and a change of scenery. He swept up a discarded hoodie from the floor and halted at the door, juggling both the task of opening it as he threw on the article of clothing. He rubbed irritatedly at the bandage still on his arm underneath the sleeve of his hoodie as he tiredly watched the fluffy tail of his cuddly companion exit the room first.

"You don't have to get up." He mumbled, exhaustion obvious in his raspy voice.

The pretty white cat with the grey stockings paused as she turned her head and looked up at him with those clear eyes if hers, letting out a pretty meow before continuing that dignified gait of hers to where she knew he was heading.

"Well, if you want to..." He rubbed at his eyes with the palm of his hand, still drowsy regardless of if he could return to sleep or not.

He pretended to meander through the metal halls of his submarine, but even the cat had him pegged. He wasn't exactly sure of the time, having not thought to look at the clock in his room before escaping the confines of his nightmares, but he had stopped being surprised whenever he stumbled through the galley doors to see Leon awake and dressed, beginning his prepping for the many meals he individually made throughout the day. Having grown up with him, Law knew the man only slept four and a half hours at night and an hour and a half nap shortly after breakfast was cleaned up and no one could pay him to sleep a minute longer. He didn't even use an alarm to get up, the bastard, while Law struggled to sleep or to wake up on days his insomnia didn't plague him.

"You must look like shit if you are up this early." The chef didn't even bother doing more than glance at his new companion in the room, still focusing on his work.

Law let out a grunt to let him know he had heard the insult, but did little more than continue his shuffling towards The Sacred Coffeemaker™. He had barely made it into the kitchen area before Leon was tossing his drying towel on the counter and manhandling him away from the dark doctor's quest item. He didn't even pretend to listen to whatever Leon was saying as the taller and more alert of the two started pushing him towards a different door connected to the kitchen.

"Go lay down." Leon ordered as he managed to get him into the room.

" _Es ist ungerecht_. I can't have my bedroom in the infirmary but you can have yours in your workspace." Law grumbled as he dug his heels into the flooring. He hated being ordered around, but Leon had been trying to boss him around since they met and threatening him not to would fall on deaf ears.

" _Hör auf, mürrisch zu sein_. If we let you have your room in the infirmary, you'd never leave." He was told. "Now lay down for a while. It's not time for you to be up yet."

" _Wie würdest du wissen_?" He grumbled as he forcibly stopped them from nearing the neatly made bed. Fluffy soft blankets that he  _knew_  Leon never used himself folded nicely at the foot of the bed as if innocent decor, but Leon never pulled those out without there being 'good intentions' towards his captain. Damnit, the cat tipped him off.

He didn't have to see it to know that Leon narrowed his eyes at him moments before sweeping him off his feet and  _carrying_  his reluctant captain the rest of the way to the bed. Law was too tired to do more than bite his shoulder half heartedly, though Leon dropped him a foot above the bed as his petty revenge before pinning him to keep him from escaping.

"Because Bepo carried you to bed when you passed out on him in the bridge."

Huh. That explained why he didn't really remember going to bed or why he had been so entangled in the sheets he never slept under. Bepo had probably even taken off his hoodie and left it where he knew Law usually discarded it. Bet he even tucked him in and gave him a quick lick goodnight, the overly affectionate mink.

"Is he still on duty?" Law mumbled as his eyes started feeling heavy again. He was tired, but sleep would surely elude him despite Leon's instance to try and find it.

" _Ja_." Leon didn't sound super pleased, but Bepo was the best at staying up for long hours with small naps between. It was why, when off duty, he could always be found with Law napping. "Now don't fight me and try resting. You have had three hours of sleep in the last thirty-six."

" _Wie spät ist es?_ " Law attempted to roll over, which Leon allowed. When he wasn't tossing about sleeplessly or nightmarishly, he slept on his stomach. A habit he had developed sometime after his fourteenth birthday, seeing as before he slept on his side.

Warm hands crept under his hoodie as strong fingers began to relax his wound up muscles. "It's a little after four.  _Du unterbrichst meine ruhige Zeit_." Though it was meant to sound accusatory, Law could hear warm endearment hidden within the tone. It still baffled him at how much the older man truly loved him that he didn't mind giving up his morning quiet to cater to him. He didn't deserve love, but he was too selfish to cast him away. Not that Leon wasn't stubborn about staying with him, despite Law's obvious flaws and failings.

He closed his eyes as Leon continued his ministrations, slowly relaxing more and more by the minute, but he was still wide awake. He only jumped a bit when Belladonna hopped onto the bed and stole his hat from his head, no doubt the culprit who had left it on the bedside, before curling up next to him. She was such a good cat. He couldn't ask for a better one. He didn't know how long Leon massaged his back half-heartedly before Law began to space out, but he was jolted out of it when he realized his mistake and the older of the two had switched his attention to Law's socked feet.

Law forced out a displease grunt, trying his best to choke back a whine shortly after when Leon hit one of his more tender nerves. He couldn't move to stop him, his body going limp as his second-in-command knowingly attacked Law's one weakness with those strong, deft fingers of his. He buried his face the best he could into Leon's pillow to smother his own mewling sounds.

"That's cheating." Law muffled out, barely keeping the ticklish feeling from causing his whole body to twitch. Leon had found one of his more tender spots. His arms wrapped around the pillow to help muffle the pleased grunts as the other man loosened up the nerves in his foot.

"Geez Law, your feet are like ice-cubes." Leon reprimanded him. "I keep telling you to give yourself foot rubs to help with your poor circulation, but you don't so I end up having to do it for you. Your feet are-"

"-important to care for." Law let out a short gasp. "Ja, you keep  _telling_  me."

"Then  _start_  doing it." Leon pressed his fingers hard into a particular bundle of nerves and Law started kicking his other leg against the mattress from the intensity of the feeling it stimulated.

"Ahhh!  _Stop_!" He managed to kick Leon's back as the other man laughed as his surrogate brother's squirming. He snatched the foot kicking him and switched feet to Law's unamusement.

"I know it riles you up, but it amuses me." Leon gloated as he began his work on the other foot.

Half an hour later, after Leon had worked his way up to Law's back once more, he left him rolled up like a burrito in the spare blankets he kept in his room for the sole purpose of Law using when he came to sleep with him after particularly nasty nightmares. He washed his hands and focused once more on his morning prepping, completely aware that he had accomplished something when Law was too comfortable and lethargic to try to extract himself from the tightly wound blankets cocooning him.

Leon cut up a few slices of cucumber and threw them into a jar before filling it with clean water and placing it into the fridge to chill. He'd have Law drink it to help detox after he couldn't lay there any longer. To relax the atmosphere a bit more, the tall chef began to hum old lullabies that he use to sing when Law had been too sick to do anything.

"Cheater." Law mumbled from Leon's room, the door having been left ajar so Law didn't feel alone.

Leon chortled a bit between notes.

The quiet that surrounded them was calming and, for the next fifteen minutes, unperturbed, but Law wasn't always the sole culprit to come slinking in before breakfast was announced. Leon didn't even bother saying good morning to the disgruntled, haggard appearance of their tallest human crewmate as Elias shuffled into the kitchen. He looked as if sleep had been lost to him and he had mourned it's absence like a lifelong lover would.

Actually, with how much Elias loathed sleeping alone, Leon was surprised how long he had held out. The chef pulled a beverage out of the fridge and handed it to the haggard man before gestured towards the ajar door of his bedroom, prompting Elias to drag himself towards it to see the future victim of his desire to not sleep alone. He quickly downed the drink and handed it back to Leon before making his move. Law didn't even get around to blearily opening his eyes before the other man dropped onto Leon's bed and pulled the blanket cocooned Law close to him as he tangled his limbs into the blankets.

"Shit! Elias!  _Get off of me_!" Law wriggled about for a few moments, but, too entangled in the well wrapped blankets and Elias's hold to escape, he gave up and sourly laid there with Elias curled against his back. Soft purring snores soon coming from the bigger man as he finally was reunited with his beloved sleep.

"He's been having trouble with restlessness for the last few days." Leon spoke lowly as to not wake up the easily grouchy man. "And his sugar levels keep plummeting. He has basically moved his workspace into the galley so I can give him snacks every hour. If this continues for too much longer, he's going to start having some serious issues."

Law sighed as he turned his head to look at what he could of Elias's form behind him. They knew there would be a rough adjustment phase for Elias, but neither Law or Leon could have expected how difficult it would be for the man. Someone like him wasn't really made to travel long term in an environment like this. Luckily they were scheduled to port sometime soon and Elias could spend some private time with a few women in the meantime to take the edge off.

"Bepo give you an ETA for getting to Cimarron Port?" Law asked, despite not really being in the mood to have conversations. Elias was a furnace compared to him and his body heat was seeping through the blankets and making him drowsy.

"He said sometime early afternoon today. However, that was a sleepy guess when I last saw him shuffling you off to bed around three this morning." Leon shrugged out of habit despite knowing Law couldn't see it. "It may have changed since then."

"I'll get a proper estimate later today and while we are there, let's be sure to stock up on glucose tablets to supplement snacks so Elias doesn't pick up too much extra weight from constant snacking. Once he's stable again, I'll put him on a more rigorous training cycle for a while to ensure he stays in good shape." He let out a half stifled yawn as he laid his head further into the pillow.

"I'm  _sure_  he'll be  _delighted_  to hear that." Leon blithely said.

"Hmmm." Law's eyes wouldn't open anymore.

Leon started humming again when it was obvious that conversations were over and Law drifted somewhere between consciousness and sleep, acutely aware of sounds and thoughts that ran through his head but unable to open his eyes. On the other hand, Leon was wide awake and happily finishing up his decisions on what meals he was going to serve today. He was currently pitting the last of their avocados he had picked up a while ago that was getting close to its expiration date. He'd be making a guacamole spread for some of his breakfast creations. Avocados were a super fruit. It boosted the immune system, helped with digestion, regulated hunger, boasted anti-inflammatory properties to name a few health benefits. Mix that with some of the other ingredients he put into his guacamole and it was the perfect way to help promote good health first thing in the morning.

Which he had a feeling that they would need.

He knew that once they made port, the majority would want to eat at a restaurant, despite how Leon cooked way better than any run of the mill hole-in-the-wall joint the guys would choose. So instead of making a dinner plan after breakfast, he'd make a shopping list of not only the things they were getting low on but the few items he was looking for that weren't necessarily easily found on certain islands. He'd have to go with Basil later so that he could teach the boy the finer points of where to shop for fresh produce markets and bargaining good prices as well as where to find more exotic items as well.

As if summoned by his passing thoughts, Basil walked into the galley and slowly made his way over to the counter where Leon could be seen cutting up the rest of his ingredients for guacamole.

"Ah, Basil." Leon was quickly chopping up a white onion as he spoke. "So today you and I are going to have to run errands. We're getting low on a few things and I want to teach you a few tricks of the trade while we are out, so eventually I can rely on you to do the shopping while I carry out a few other tasks."

He slide the chopped onion pieces into the bowl before turning his attention to a red onion.

Basil perked up at the idea of being taught and nodded enthusiastically. "That would be wonderful, Mister Leon."

"But until then, I do have a favor to ask of you." Leon dumped the chopped red onion into the bowl and began dicing a tomato instead. "Bepo has been on the bridge for the last twenty hours and he needs a break before we get to the port. He says we should be getting there sometime this afternoon, so can you and your brother go relieve Bepo of his post now and send him to me? I'll send him back before it comes time to dock. We already surfaced earlier this morning and the engines will be shut down in about an hour so we can sail the rest of the way."

Basil looked a little confused. "I still don't understand why we sail into port."

"Penguin and Shachi like to give the engines some cool down time prior to docking so they can do a quick maintenance check and take stock of what they might need while in port. Also, most vessels outside of a Marine warship don't have engines and the sound draws unwanted,  _unsavory_  attention at times." Diced tomatoes were thrown in and garlic cloves were now being smashed and tossed in. "Persephone is already an ostentatious color, so we try to be subtle where we can."

"Alright, Mister Leon," Basil nodded his understanding, "I'll go wake up my brother and send Bepo your way."

"Thank you Basil." He gave him a pleased smile before dumping in the last secret ingredients of his guacamole and mixing them together. Basil smiled back before scampering away enthusiastically.

This morning was proving to be a busy morning, Leon mused as he watched his young helper nearly run into Oz on his way out the door.

"Morning Oz! Sorry about that." Basil didn't stop, eager to please his superior.

The older of the two grunted an acknowledgement as she slowly slinked into the galley, her footsteps quiet as ever. Teisei darting into the room as well, careful not to be caught underfoot as he twirled about Oz's legs. He had probably just woken up unlike his human companion.

Leon didn't even make a face as the big cat pushed himself through the swinging doors that connected the galley to the kitchen and proceeded from there to slink into the ajar door of his bedroom. The giant cat had long forgiven Law for his slight against his master and often sought his company while Oz worked long hours, much to her displeasure. She still didn't like Law very much, despite how little contact the two of them had since she had been discharged from the infirmary.

Oz, on the other hand, grabbed a stool from the corner of the room and brought it towards the counter so she could stay in the galley and still talk to him while he continued his work in the kitchen. She, unlike most times of the day where she was on break when she visited him, was wearing a sweater she could probably fit two people in and some grey cotton sweatpants that had elastic cuffs on the ankles to keep her better insulated and toe socks that managed to catch Leon by surprise, seeing as not many people like such a feature in their socks.

Instead of talking to her, he opened up the fridge and produced a mason jar filled with a liquid for her to drink. She wrinkled her nose at it, but did little more than uncap it and drink its contents down with a bitter expression. Leon wasn't offended when she chugged the contents and proceeded to make a disagreeable expression as she shoved the glass back into his personal space.

"That's still gross." He chuckled at her complaint as he set the mason jar into the sink.

"It's not meant to taste good." He was already back at the fridge and pulling out a clear container full of freshly squeezed orange juice. He got another jar and filled it halfway with the juice before pushing it towards her. "It's suppose to  _be_  good  _for_  you."

"Everything  _else_  you make that's 'good for me' tastes fine." She sipped at the juice, tension leaving her as the bad taste did. "Just not that."

"Yes, well, I am putting you a bit on the fast track to help you recover from your previous bad 'tea' habit you had. Some of the ingredients you were using had a lot of poor side effects that last long past your use of them."

"I understand that  _now_ , but it doesn't make drinking that other concoction any better." She sipped at the orange juice again. A pleased expression overpowering her annoyance with each sip. She was so easily persuaded into a better mood with pleasant food and drinks.

"It's helping though, is it not?"

He wasn't sure if Oz saw it that way, but he was already noticing she was a whole lot calmer than when they had… taken off with her nine days ago. She still got claustrophobic at times, but less so now that they would surface from time to time. She could go onto deck to take her breaks up there and breathe the fresh sea air. She didn't suffer from any major anxiety attacks after the first few days of being cut off from that herbal tea she had been making herself up until then and Law tried not to agitate her for more than a few health checks to make sure she was doing okay and following the routines he wanted her to practice. Law still antagonized her, like a mongoose taunting a snake, but, with how limited their interactions were nowadays and her being so busy with the other mechanics, it wasn't as awful as those first few days.

Her skittish paranoia seemed to be decreasing the longer she was with them and was warming up to the other mechanics. Though her scopophobia flared up from time to time with the fear of her gender being discovered, she was able to calm herself down instead of inciting an anxiety attack within herself. Not only that, but she was quickly slimming down. She wasn't thin yet, but she was no longer as visibly chunky as before, which, though Leon hated it, could not solely be contributed to his iron tight control of her meals and her long work hours down in the belly of the submarine but her bout of motion sickness, which had lasted three days before Law cleared her to leave the infirmary.

She thinned her lips, narrowing those canary yellow eyes of her. "I suppose."

"I'll take what I can get from someone as stubborn as you." Leon laughed breathily. He was in the middle of pan searing a slab of Elephant Tuna he had defrosted the day before as well as making a two egg cheese and chive omelette. He focused on the two plates he was making before returning back to their conversation. "Have you been remembering to take off your binder every long break you have?"

They had supplied her with a proper breast binder instead of her dangerous misuse of ace bandages. Though, when they had produced it from their stock of health supplies, Oz had raised a skeptical brow and her unspoken question of why they even had something like that was written all over her face. And both to be mysterious and churlish, they never gave her a reason. If she truly desired to know, she'd have to stick around longer than  _nine_  days.

The cross-dressing woman glanced about the area nervously before her eyes found themselves glancing at the ajar door.

"No one that isn't aware is present." Leon promised her, which, to be completely honest, was true. She simply didn't know that it was more than just Law and him yet. Leon also had a feeling that Basil and Orpheus were catching on, but that was a passive observation.

She was quiet for a moment more before releasing a tense breath of air and answering his inquiry, though she made no eye contact. "Yes. Whenever I am on break." She plucked at her baggy sweater. "Like now. The guys have learned I don't enjoy having my personal space intruded upon, so they keep their respective distance. So no mishaps or worries there. But it's really nice- the binder. My breasts don't get in the way like before and I can still breath easily as I work."

Leon studied her for a moment. "You should see about getting a sports bra for the times you aren't wearing the binder. It will help with back support."

"I'll remember that." She took another sip of her orange juice and decidedly changed the subject. She wasn't use to such conversations, though, unlike other woman, she wasn't embarrassed a man was talking so casually to her about it. "So I heard from Peng and Shach that we are making port today? They were telling me as they were turning off the engines and dismissing me for the rest of the day."

That was the moment Bepo came through the door, swaying a bit from how sleepy he was. "We will be at Cimarron Port sometime late afternoon with these wind speeds."

Leon and Oz both casted their gazes at the tired bear. He had gone and put on his own sleepwear, which consisted of silk trousers and nothing else, before heading to the galley as Basil had relayed to him.

"Thanks Bepo." Leon said before nudging his head over to where his bedroom was. "Why don't you take a short rest before breakfast? Two  _somebodies_  woke up earlier than they should have and probably needs some Polar Bear TLC."

Oz watched in mild amusement as Bepo's eyes gleamed a bit. He gave one nod, yawning wide as he did, before he, with an amazing level of stealth Oz  _never_  expected someone like Bepo to have, slid past the swinging doors and slipped into the room without the door letting out a creak. There was silence for a moment before both she and the chef could hear the disgruntled cries of both Law  _and_  Elias. Belladonna and Teisei making a quick escape from the room out of self-preservation.

"Bepo,  _no_!" Law cried out. "Quit it! No- _blegh_ \- no bear kisses!"

"The  _fuck_?!" Elias shouted as well, obviously having been asleep prior to having a slobbery tongue touch his face. "Seriously!? Ugh! Bear breath!"

" _LEON_!" Both men hollered irately and Oz could see a bit of what was going on in the bedroom. She had to smother her laughter because both men were pinned down by the furry Polar Bear Mink as he laid on top of both of them and licked their faces affectionately. Leon wasn't even looking, but he was laughing loudly at their cruel fate.

" _Garachu_ ~!" Bepo claimed before tightening his hug on the two and giving out round two of kisses, both complaining and cussing up a storm as they tried escaping their overly affectionate tormentor.

Watching their futile struggles kept Oz amused long enough for Leon to finish cooking her breakfast. He put out a large plate with the two egg omelette, some of the pan seared fish, and a good amount of guacamole on a piece of toast. As appetizing as it was, Oz sent him a small look.

"Eat till you are satisfied and you can eat the rest between now and lunch." Leon told her.

She nodded her understanding and picked up the fork he had given her and slowly made her way through the meal. The chef had quickly discovered that Oz ate in small quantities, not able to eat even a normal portion of food like everyone else, but required it often as her metabolism quickly burned through the food. He often sent her small meals and snacks via Basil so that he knew she was eating properly and not skipping very necessary meals like she had been doing prior to his intervention. A good meal plan could help with anxiety, stress, and depression, which Leon implemented it as best as he could with this group of individuals.

He quickly went to work making more meals, to which he set temporarily aside when he noticed Oz picking at hers near the end of her appetite. He took her plate before she began to play with it and wrapped up the rest in a bento box he had fished out of his cupboards just for her. She looked sheepish at least at being caught picking at her food and turned her focus on the two cats now vying for her attention. She picked up Belladonna to her cat's disbelief and petted her fluffy, bunny-soft fur. Teisei wrapped himself around the legs of her seat and outwardly sulked.

Law made his entrance into the kitchen, having finally escaped Bepo's affections and the pile of blankets he had been trapped in, though Elias had yet managed (though things had gotten quiet, so perhaps the two had dozed back off?). Oz vaguely wondered if he was some sort of master of escape, seeing as there should have been no way for him to get out of those blankets, let alone Bepo's ironclad hold. She had been sipping again at her orange juice, enjoying the last remnants of her meal when he quickly slipped in and nearly shot orange juice out of her nose. She began to cough and laugh as she turned her head to avoid making Belladonna icky on accident. Leon had abandoned his attention on cooking for the moment to also laugh openly at his captain's appearance.

Law's hair was normally unseen under his hat, but there had been times she had seen the wild uncombed mane of her abductor and, bathed in Bepo's love, it had looked like someone had attempted to tame it, but it had backfired and now stood on end in some places, like a horrible cowlick, and flat in others. His face appeared to be still a little slobbery and his blank expression told her that he had seen things he could never unsee. It soon enough morphed to irritation as he scowled threateningly at Leon then her.

Normally it would have worked, he still rubbed her the wrong way, but his hair was sabotaging his efforts to look menacing and she had to bury her face in Bella's fur to hide from its ridiculousness. She tried to choke back the laughter as well, but she knew that this was a sight she'd never forget.

Law had his hat in hand and he smashed it onto his head. It did a job of hiding his wild hair and sobered both of his hecklers a bit, though he still a bit haggard from his affair.

"Here." Leon was already pulling out the cucumber water he had set up earlier for him. "Drink this while I get your breakfast."

Law snatched it from Leon's hand once it was in close enough range with a sour look on his face. He took a quick gulp and he exited Leon's kitchen to return back to the galley side of area where Oz was. He glanced at her for a moment, raising a questioning brow that rose up under the brim of his hat, at her bright and colorful toe socks. She scowled at his unspoken judgement at her off duty comfort clothes. The moment ended as he continued on towards her. The woman lurched from her spot on the stool when he made no inclination of respecting her personal space and she nearly shouted when the Heart pirate promptly sat in the vacated stool. To add insult to injury, he reached down with one hand to pick up her large cat, still wound around the circumference of the stool sulking, and placed in him in his lap.

He took another long sip of his water as he stared at her, wordlessly taunting her with lopsided smirk as he began to glide his hand through Teisei's coarse fur. Her cat preened at the attention and Oz was just that much more pissed off at the man, though she still held his super soft cat in her own arms.

Leon broke their staring content when he plopped Law's breakfast plate in front of him loudly. "Stop antagonizing Oz if you don't want your new mechanic fleeing our submarine at the very first moment we make port."

"I'm not anyone's _'new mechanic'_." Oz corrected Leon with a snap. She liked him well enough, but the inclination that she would willingly join this  _infuriating man's_  crew was a trigger. "I  _will_  be leaving the moment we make port. I have already rebuffed his invitation to join and have worked hard during the duration of my entrapment here to honor the food, board, and medical treatment I have received." She turned her attention back to Law, scowl now even focused than before. "Despite how nice your crew is,  _Doctor Trafalgar_ , I do not like  _you_  and will not stay because of it."

Law watched her with disinterest for a few moments, sipping all the while on his drink, before turning his head away from her form. He had heard this enough times during short interactions they had now that it simply sounded to him like a mantra she cited to make herself feel better. He petted at her cat's head, observing how she bristled at the action from the corner of his eye, before setting down his empty glass and focused on his meal. He reached for the fork Leon had put on his plate before beginning to eat, deigning not to responded to her comments because he already knew he'd figure a way to finagle her back onto his vessel before leaving Cimarron Port.

"Are you  _ignoring me_?!" She hissed from the spot where she was standing, still holding Belladonna in her arms. She was tempted to fling the cat at his face, but didn't want to spook the darling cat or have her hate her for doing so.

"Isn't that what you  _wanted_?" Law couldn't help the taunt slip from his lips in mock confusion. "Oz-ya, you need to decide what it is you want, ja. You say you want me to leave you alone, but the moment I do, you complain that I am."

If looks could kill, this one would have been quite the messy murder.

"Knock it off, both of you!" Leon interrupted their bickering before someone did something they couldn't take back. "I'm not in the mood to listen to you both squabble like  _children_  until we make port. It's breakfast time and I want some  _peace_  to go with it."

Oz opened her mouth to say something, but Leon cut her off, waving a hand in a stern silencing motion. The fact that he was holding his cutting knife made it all the more intimidating. "Go meditate over in the corner until you can  _not_  be antagonized by every single thing Law does." He turned to Law. "Eat your breakfast and go back to napping with our other resident grump until not  _every single thing that comes out of your mouth is antagonizing_."

"But then I'd be sleeping for all eternity, ja." If he actually could sleep.

"At this moment, I am quite fine with that."

"Seconded," came the unsolicited comment from Oz's mouth.

Leon turned on her. "Go to your corner, Oz."

"Are we assigning time-out corners?" Shachi made himself known loudly at that moment, entering through the threshold of the area with the other three mechanics. All four of them in their loungewear and looking like they had just finished showering. "Because I totally would like to point out that  _that_  corner," he gestured at one of the galley's multiple corners, "has always been mine and I want to reserve the rights to it, because I  _earned_  that corner."

"Bullshit!" Penguin countered indignantly. "That's always been my corner and you're just jealous that it's a better corner than your pitiful corner!"

Ignaas, whose hair was still drying so he had yet put it up in his signature pompadour, glanced over at Oddmund. "So do we timeshare a corner or have we yet gotten in so much shit that we've needed one here?"

"Not sure. Most of the time I'm shitfaced when we get a corner- I think." The man wearing the purple beanie shrugged, scratching at his orange-y yellow sideburned as he mused. "So I can't give you a definitive answer on that."

"No one's being assigned a corner!" Leon interrupted their interruption, muttering under his breath a single word of 'yet'. While he was still vexed, he was grateful for Shachi's timely interruption. The tension in the room had significantly decreased since they all had entered.

"Oh, then what's the problem that Oz's gettin' a corner?" Shachi shamelessly poked his nose into the situation. It's not like a lot of things stayed secret around here, after all.

"Because I refuse to agree to join  _his_  crew." Oz grumbled through a clenched jaw. This man was not good for her stress levels,  _which she was trying to keep down_.

All four mechanics looked so upset at her admission, like she had told them that cyborgs were an impossible feat of bio-engineering that belonged only in sci fi books-  _which they certainly did not_. Cyborgs were  _real_. Even if she had yet got to meet one; or see one. Ninjas and androids too.

Penguin was the one to blurt out, "But why?!"

"Is it Captain?!" Shachi whined as he further entered the room and put Law in a headlock, eliciting a stern, ignored warning. "You'll hardly have to see this guy! I swear!"

"Yeah!" Penguin joined in and forcibly turned Law's head so Oz had a good look at his annoyed face, becoming more and more irritated by the moment. "This guy's just the cash cow! He's the guy we're painting a big target on as we try to find One Piece!"

"Both of you better quit, ja." Law grounded out a warning as he tried to stand up, temporarily breaking their hold while Teisei fled from his lap.

The other two men wrapped their arms around his neck and quickly yanked on him with their whole bodyweight, causing him to have to hunch as they pulled his face closer to their level. Penguin had his jaw between his fingers as he squished Law's scowling face. "I know he looks like a dark, twisted, murdering psychopath, but he's really just a big old softie. Look at this face! This is the true face of altruism! The face of a future Pirate King! Women even think he's handsome."

Oz did her best not to let her lips twitch into even the smallest smile, but it was refreshing to watch these two successfully harass the man that seemed unharrassable to her. She managed to pull off a stone cold face as the chaos continued, noting how Iggy and Odd had to cover their mouths to muffle their sniggerin or how Leon's eyes gleamed in pure amusement.

"Last  _warning_. Off. Now." Law's voice was low and raspy. He was  _done_  being hassled by these two in front of  _almost_  everyone and was ready to fling them both onto the ground before assigning them deck duty the whole time they were in port.

"Yes Captain~." The two chanted in time. "We love you, Captain!"

And with that, the two leaned in and gave him the biggest, sloppiest wet kisses on the cheeks Oz had ever seen a human do, only to gag a moment later, releasing Law from their grips as they began sputtering in disgust.

"Oh god! What did you bathe in?!" Shachi lamented as he began to wipe the inside of his mouth with his arm.

"You taste like Bepo's mouth!" Penguin added his two cents.

The other two mechanics were full out laughing now and Oz had to slap a hand over her mouth to keep her more feminine laugh from being heard. She didn't want to laugh, but their reactions were perfect, especially since she had witness all the events leading up to this one, perfect moment. Even Leon's mood looked like it had improved, now that the in-fighting had ended.

Law's smug, crooked smirk returned as he observed their tortured countenances, now standing at full height with arms crossed haughtily. "And how would you  _know_  that Penguin?"

Oz could sense the glare that was unseen under Penguin's hat. "You know  _very_  well why I know that. It was  _your_  evil doing after all."

"And it'll also be  _my_  evil doing when the both of you are outside in the dry heat  _mopping_  all five decks this afternoon." Law turned and grabbed his plate and drink and moved over to where he normally sat in the galley. The small action was so he could eat with his crew instead of isolating himself by sitting at the counter, Oz realized.

"You're still taking a nap, Law." Leon reminded him, before turning to Oz. "And I still want you meditating in a corner until their breakfast is eaten."

" _Ooooo_ ~, Mama's mad at you!" Shachi taunted both parties, finished wiping out his mouth.

He was nailed hard in the side face with the backside of an eating spoon, nearly knocking his sunglasses from his face, but not close enough to break them. "Go to your corner too."

"Yes Mama." Another spoon was thrown, which he managed to dodge this time.

"If I call you Papa, can I get my breakfast?" Penguin teased.

" ** _No_**. Now go to  _your_  corner."

"But Shachi took it!"

"Go to  _another_  corner."

"But it was  _my_  corner  _first_  and-!" A knife barely missed his ear as it flew by, hilt hitting the wall across the room with an angry thud. "-I am more than willing to find another corner."

It was only after the three mechanics being 'punished' where all in their corners did Ignaas dare to approach the counter while Oddmund was going about picking up the thrown utensils. Leon had a withering glare on his face, daring him to even make a stupid comment. "Sooo… May I have some of your  _deeeelicious_ ~ gourmet coffee with my lovely balanced meal that you work so hard to make- of which I  _always_  appreciate?"

There was probably a streak of jealousy coursing through several of the men as Ignaas sat down with a hearty plate of breakfast, balancing in one hand, not one but two mugs of coffee all for himself. Law being at the very top of it.

* * *

Leon was a merciful man, as Shachi and Penguin continually professed to him, after he heaved a heavy sigh not even ten minutes later and summoned all three mechanics from their corners to sit at the round galley table everyone was conglomerating to. Elias and Bepo had been roused from their naps and the polar bear, ever the most thoughtful of the crew, assisted the chef in bringing out the side dishes of the meal to be enjoyed as the men seemed fit. Bowls were laid out filled with cut fruit, yogurt, granola, and a few spare jars for anyone to make up their own parfait. Toast and pancakes were also lying in their own neat stacks, with jam, peanut butter, and hazelnut butter available to add as toppings. Extra guacamole in a bowl of zucchini chips to be eaten at leisure. The meals were all customized to everyone's personalized health plan too. Ignaas, she knew from him mentioning it, was lactose free, so Leon made sure that he used soymilk and goat milk as a substitute. Seeing as the man was vocally enjoying some sort of cheesy omelette, the woman knew he didn't think less about it not being cow milk. The mechanics' meals, other than hers, were always high in calories to give them energy to work long hours. Hers, she had realized, were always crafted to be light and nutritious but still give her energy, and, since her appetite was so easily filled, food that was easy to wrap up and eat later when she felt peckish again. Regardless of if she wasn't hungry, Oz found herself sitting between Bepo, who sat on his captain's left (Leon was on his right), and, surprisingly, Elias. The man didn't say much or glance at her very often, but he had more manners than the mechanics, who ate their meals with gusto.

Hats had all been abandoned to the spare spots on the table or even to rest on the bend of their knees when the men sat down at the table, possibly the only amount of manners that Leon had managed to drive home in a few of them. Perhaps it was because she had already eaten her fill, but the change definitely held unusual interest to Oz, who had only seen quick glimpses of faces at times, to observe their unobscured visages for once in a rare moment. The whole lot of them, barring the variant hues of black hair that Elias, Leon, and Law had, had a bright pallet of coloring.

Oddmund had almost what Oz would call a genuine strawberry blond, with how yellow but orange his hair was. He had some serious sideburns that gradiented down to nothing by the time one traced their eyes from his ear, down the line of his jaw, and onto his chin. Mutton chops, she wanted to call them, but a much tamer version. Without his beanie on his head, his hair seemed a little bit wild, but nothing like how wild the dark doctor's unbrushed mess of a head often looked like it could get. His attention stayed mostly down at his plate, his eyes hooded from her full view, but, even in the depths of the submarine, she could swear they were green as a clover in a clear summer's day.

Ignaas had the longest hair among this crowd, his hair, when not done up in his complicated pompadour, reached down past his shoulders, barely brushing against his collarbone as he looked down at his plate while he stuffed another mouthful of omelette into it. Red wine in coloring that matching those dark eyes of his nicely. Oz made a mental note to try to catch sight of his eye coloring in the sun rather than the florencests of the galley to discern what color they really were.

She had already known Shachi's hair color. He was a classic ginger. In the fluorescents, though, she could spot light freckles across his checks, almost hidden under the sunglasses he wore. His hair was the second longest on the crew and he did nothing outside of securing his green hat on top of his head to tame the wild locks. Oz wondered how angry he would get if someone ever gave into the urge to braid it, because everytime she looked at him, the compulsion caused her fingers to twitch as she fought it. She mildly wondered what his sunglasses were for, because she had yet ever see him remove them, lest he was on break and napping it away.

The most surprising of the mechanics, she would have to admit, was Penguin. Because his hat often obscured  _most_  of his face, unless she stood barely a few feet away and peered up under the brim of his  _very custom_  hat, she couldn't even see the shape of his eyes, let alone the color of them. His hair though, chopped short to where not even a brush was required, was slightly redder than Shachi's ginger locks. She guessed, seeing as the two had admitted to growing up together since their toddler years, that most of the indigenous people to their home island carried similar coloring. However, his eyes were so  _icy blue_. She had grown up with a lot of men who had come from all corners of North Blue, sometimes farther, but none of them had ever this shade and she caught herself admiring them for too long too often. She thanked what little luck she actually seemed to possess that he has too busy eating to notice.

To distract herself a bit, because her eyes had always been drawn to splashes of color, and, in the mechanical greys of the sub, colors stood out, she gave in to the urge to make a fruit parfait. Scooping a little of fruit, yogurt, and granola into a canning jar Leon repurposed for dining uses, she focused on savoring the fruit in the fat of the yogurt. Monks never ate things like this and she was still learning how enjoyable food could be. She suckled a little on the necter of a yellow fruit, sweet, a tint of sour, and cold. She would definitely miss this. She grabbed another jar and poured herself some more orange juice.

Beside her Bepo was licking his plate clean before turning to glance over Law's way. "I'm going back to the bridge. I don't feel comfortable with any of you doing my job, and-" He was interrupted by the mechanics as they, with different degrees of food shoved into their mouths, shouted ' _RUDE_ ' at him. He flinched, his head looking down as he mumbled a 'sorry'. Law shot them a warning look before they could continue before prompting Bepo to continue with a nod of his head. "I don't think it wouldn't be fair if those two had to miss this."

It wasn't every day that a smorgasbord like this was laid out with everyone's busy schedules, Oz had noticed.

Law nodded calmly, still chewing a bit on his most recent bite. Once his mouth was cleared, he spoke calmly, kindly to his navigator. "Leave your notes about the island and we'll look through them as we assign onshore chores to everyone, ja."

"I'll send them back with Basil." Bepo nodded as he got up, taking his plates and walking them to the counter window to the kitchen.

Oz nearly squawked her surprise when Law scooted over one chair, sliding his meal along with his arm and situated himself so he was now sitting where Bepo had. She barely noticed Leon doing the same, leaving two open spots for the two brothers to sit in. She almost fled, but a hand held her in place from the other side, and she whipped her head around to her other side to see  _Elias_  of all people keeping her in her spot. His fuchsia eyes (Weren't they ocher? She blinked and they were once more. It must have been a trick of the light.) told her to calm down as he chewed his food silently. His touch, after her initial shock of contact, was soothing, and as he slid his hand off her shoulder, she felt safe enough between the two tall men not to try to escape after all.

Her attention turned from Elias, who, while he was eating steadily was just about done with his breakfast, already pulling out his insulin kit to balance out his blood sugars when he did finish, to Law. She was in slight awe of his plate, seeing as nearly everyone else had quickly polished off their main entree and were fighting for the rites to the pancakes and toast and zucchini chips and guacamole, he was nowhere near done with his plate. Trafalgar Law, she came to understand almost immediately, ate slower than fuck. He would chew slowly on each bite, watching the others in the room chatting away, sometimes joining their small talk, and, usually with a hard nudge from Leon, look back down at his plate, cut out another decent size morsel of food, and put it in his mouth to eat half-heartedly.

No, Oz rectified. He got bored of eating. No matter how appetizing it looked or how good it tasted, he quickly lost interested in it. His mind was on other things, perhaps even things within this room, but not on his food. She would admit he savored his bites, enjoying the flavors in his mouth, but if one isn't hungry, what compels him to eat? When his grey eyes casted their way to her, the young woman returned her attention to her jar of yogurt, fitting a spoonful of it in her mouth, the crunch of the granola filling her mouth with a strange satisfaction. She had almost been caught staring.

Beside him, Leon sighed. He had finished up his own meal, which, now that Oz thought about it had been too meagar for a man with such an active lifestyle, and took Law's plate and set it infront of himself. Law made no argument, his attention falling from Oz back to his chef, though his nose crinkled when the other man quickly made up a jar similar to Oz's and thrusted it into the captain's hand. It was an unspoken compromise, one that Law accepted as he took up a spoon and began to mix up the ingredients together.

The moment Leon's attention wasn't on Law though (he was lecturing Shachi to chew with his mouth closed instead of smacking loudly on his food), she found much to her shock, the spoonful that should have been his first bite was dumped into  _her_  serving. Her eyes quickly met his, as if demanding him to explain, and his warned to keep quiet.

He did  _not_  just do that, she gawked at him,  _oh_ , but he  _did_. Such  _audacity_  from this man!

Scowling, Oz ate the piece before reaching over to the fruit bowl, gathering up a decent amount and quickly dumping it into  _Law's_  jar. His face was one of complete discontent and he turned his eyes from the jar to her glower wordlessly. She covered her jar with a hand and kept her guard up. She had only served herself what she knew she'd eat and he had already gotten away with not eating as much as Leon had probably  _wanted_  him to eat.

Skinny bastard.

He kicked childishly at her foot with his, glowering as he took a bite, none too pleased about her defiance. Next to her, Elias chuckled under his breath, quite aware of the two's ongoings. He was in the middle of giving himself a shot of insulin when he glanced down at her. He pulled the needle out with his eyes still trained on her, keeping his hands busy with cleaning up his things and putting them away.

"I usually will humor him a bit." He whispered low so only she, and possibly Law, could hear. "He's never had much of an appetite and he's not good with eating."

"Then perhaps he should sit next to  _you_  next time." She sent a sour look at Law, who sent one right back before putting another spoonful in his mouth. Leon now boring holes into the back of his head.

"Normally I do," he lowered his head and the softness of his breath tickled at the shell of her ear. "However...I'm finding this...  _far_  more entertaining."

Elias straightened with a grunt. Oz rubbing at her ear with her shoulder, half wondering if she should feel so giddy from such a sensation and half mortified that she had. He sent a nasty look his captain's way. She figured out why when the heel of Law's foot brushed against the loose part of her sweatpants as he returned his leg into his personal space. The dark doctor was sending a hard look at his bookkeeper with something of a warning in his grey eyes.

The young woman would be grateful when they got to port and she could finally get the hell away from these people.

Mercifully, before she got caught up in some weird war sitting between these two men, her bunkmates came into the room, Basil proudly delivering Bepo's notes to Law.

He nodded his thanks, still chewing on his bite of parfait, and glanced at papers given to him as Basil ushered his brother over to where the kitchen was. He probably already knew where their meals were and wanted to serve Orpheus some coffee. The captain paused as he stared at the notes. He heaved a sigh.

"Forgot you can't read his writing, didn't you?" Penguin grinned wide as he watched rather amused across the round table.

"I can." He squinted at the words. "It just takes a while, ja."

"It's not any worse than yours," Shachi gestured at Law with his utensil, "and you can read that atrocity you call handwriting, Captain."

"I can  _read_  my handwriting because I  _wrote_  it, Shachi." Law huffed as he turned the paper upside down before uprighting it again. "And my handwriting is perfectly legible, ja."

The room boomed with an uproarious laughter. Even Orpheus was laughing at that statement, Basil the only one other than Oz that was confused. He never was subjected to Captain's handwriting to know its horrors. Not really knowing how to respond, Law glowered as he slouched down a bit, tossing Bepo's notes and taking a bitter bite of his yogurt as nearly the entirety of his crew laughed at him.

"That's… haha... the biggest load of bullshit… hahaha... I've ever heard." Penguin wiped a tear from his eye as he forced himself to sober up.

"Yeah!" Shachi agreed as he held his stomach from laughing too hard. "I'm just… just glad Orpheus has been… ha… translating all your notes for us."

Orpheus frown, no longer laughing. "I don't know what you're talking about. I can't read it either. I usually go to Leon when I can't read his work notes."

The room quickly sobered up as they all looked about confused.

"But we know Leon's scrawl, right Odd?" Ignaas looked over to his best friend.

"Yeah," he nodded slowly, "He writes our names on sticky notes so we know what bentos are ours. I'd recognize his. And Shach's and Pen's and your's and even 'Lias's."

The bookkeeper's angry words of 'don't call me that' went ignored.

"It's not me." Orpheus shook his head. "And I don't think it's Basil either."

Mentioned brother shook his head.

"Well if it's none of us then-"

"It says Cimarron Port is one of a few ports on Charreada Island. Fertile lands… flat plains… ranching and farming community… simplistic technology though there are rumors about the island trying to start a railroad. Hmm. I wonder what kind of locomotive they'll want…. Oh, he's also got a few question marks around the words 'log pose'. That's about it other than some star charts and a crude topographic map. I'm paraphrasing, please note that. He seems to have written out a whole report, but there's not much susutence to it, seeing as the island is very simple other than how much produce they ship. And I don't get what you lot are complaining about. I mean, sure, it's a little choppy and squiggly, but I have seen much worse scribbling. Actually, it's pretty impressive for someone with such bulky paws. Does he use special pens or maybe his claw?"

The young mechanic's curiosity had gotten the better of her and she had plucked up the discarded notes to see if it was really as illegible as everyone else was claiming. She had stopped listening at some point while they had been teasing Law. Though rare as it was for them to gang up on their captain, she couldn't stand people being made fun of for simply having terrible calligraphy when their skill sets were so obviously in different fields. She vehemently disliked Law, yes, but he was brilliant at being a doctor, she'd give him that.

She glanced up from skimming over the notes when she felt everyone staring at her. It was nearly sending her mind into a hysteria the moment she realized it and she was doing everything in her power not to have a damn panic attack here and now. Not when she was so close to  _leaving_  this damn ship.

" _You_." Penguin started, but he was at a loss of words.

" _You_  were the one rewriting Captain's requests?" Shachi finished.

Her eyes wide as she looked about, shoulders tensed painfully. She tried not to clench her hand with the papers in it. She didn't want to ruin Bepo's work. _Stay calm. Stay calm._  It was a mantra in her head now. "Was I… not suppose to?"

"You can  _read_   _his_   _scribbles_." Orpheus looked astounded.

"It took a minute or so the first time, but he looked really exhausted when he wrote it. So, yes?" Why were they all so quiet? She was starting to forget what breathing normally felt like. Oh gods, she didn't want to have a panic attack in front of all these people. She had been doing so well these last few days and-

The room had erupted into a cacophony of voices all speaking over each other as the four other mechanics began to plead for her to stay.

Elias's hand slammed onto her shoulder and it felt like his touch broke through the anxiety overtaking her, allowing her control once more. " ** _Breathe_**."

She took a long gasp of air and wondered when she had stopped. From the corner of her eye she could see Leon was pulling himself out of his seat to get to her.

"Be  _QUIET_." Law raised his voice above the others, sitting upright in his seat and reminding them all of their place underneath his authority. " _What were you told about Oz-ya_. Don't corner him, don't stare too much at him, and don't shout. And what have I said countless times before this about Basil? And  _what_  did you  _all_  just  _do_ , ja?"

Leon's hand replaced Elias's and the other man stood up and wordlessly gave up his spot to him. He moved to stand, arms folded behind Law as he watched the mechanics look abash at their slip up. Basil had to also take a puff from his inhaler from the sudden shock of all the noise, something Orpheus was currently tending to himself, worried over his younger brother.

"But he can't  _leave_!" Shachi whined. "On top of everything else he can do, he can read your writing!"

"Only Peia has ever managed to do that!" Penguin added in haste. "And she's not around to do it!"

"Thank Lady Luck for  _that_." Elias muttered under his breath as he moved to sit in Leon's abandoned spot.

"Oz-ya staying or not staying is only between him and myself." Law asserted in a stern voice, no longer in his previous lackadaisical mood where he was trying to pawn off his fruit and yogurt to the woman next to him without Leon noticing. "I expect the rest of you to shut up, behave as instructed, and trust in my ability to negotiate this, ja."

Oz had to look away from him for a moment and focus more on what Leon was reciting to her about breathing, because, damn, he was sorta cool there. For an iota. A oxygen deprived, brain addled moment. She took long breaths hoping that the feeling that had bloomed in her chest would disappear once she wasn't in a small tisy.

There was a pause before the whole sum of the crew, sans Elias and Leon, replied unanimously to his command. "Yes Captain!"

She glanced at their glowing faces as they too suffered admiration for their captain. Great, it hadn't been her brain being oxygen starved. He really was cool there.

"Now go get ready for when we make port. Shachi, Penguin, run diagnostics and see if there is anything that might need to have a spare part ready at hand. Ignaas, Oddmund, go check supplies in the engine rooms and see if we are fully stocked on all needed materials to keep Persephone running smoothly until our next destination. Orpheus, go run inventory in the infirmary. Basil, once you have caught your breath, I would like you to help Bepo once more in bridge. Elias, I will speak to you about the budget for the supplies once I have what is needed from all the areas. Leon will supply you with his once it's finished." He looked at everyone, eyes lingering for a moment on Oz, who was still shaken a bit, before turning back to the group. "Now go!"

"Yes Captain!" Hats were being thrown back on their heads as they readied to leave.

"And take your dishes to the counter!" Leon added in before they all got up in their variant speeds, eager to do as their captain had sternly commanded.

Ignaas had to turn around a bit to snag up his, but no one complained about the extra order. Oz was the only one other than the captain and his first mate that didn't move. Leon had a hand on her shoulder, coaxing her to stay seated and calm herself down. Law set down his jar as he turned to her and gently press his fingers to her throat. She noted the jar was mostly empty sans the leftovers that could not be scraped clean. She clenched at hers, still held in her one hand since she had been perusing through Bepo's notes.

"Well, I wouldn't call that an  _anxiety_  attack, ja, but it seemed to be a close call." Law confirmed, removing his hands from her person. "I am going to go you two naproxen and it will help some with the residual anxiety."

"Yes, Doctor Trafalgar." Oz inclined her head in subtle thanks.

He gave her one of his mischievous lopsided smirks before getting up and leaving the room to go fetch the medicine for her. Leon patted her shoulder and drew her attention to him.

"Sit here for a while and meditate after he gets that for you." He then gestured at her jar. "Try eating a bit of that to help calm down. I'm going to start cleaning up, but ask if you need something."

Oz wordlessly agreed as he got up, but her brows furrowed when she thought about what he had just said. She glanced down at her jar, knowing she had taken her last bite before delving into Bepo's notes and nearly dropped the jar- one she had never even set down since finishing- in shock.

 _Son of a bitch._  She didn't know how he even did it, but she recognized the half eaten jar of parfait in her hand not as hers but as  _Trafalgar's_.

What the actual  _fuck_?

She needed to get off this submarine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Es ist ungerecht: It's not fair
> 
> Hör auf, mürrisch zu sein: Stop being grumpy
> 
> Wie würdest du wissen?: How would you know?
> 
> wie spät ist es: What time is it?
> 
> Du unterbrichst meine ruhige Zeit: You're invading my quiet time  
> ____________________________________________________________________  
> A/N: I am so sorry it takes me forever to get my ducks in a row. It's not intentional and I don't have plans to stop, but my brain sometimes wants to be farther than I am and skips over to future ideas instead of focusing on one arc at a time. I am working on this by outlining better.
> 
> As for Penguin. I chose red hair. I know its a gamble with Oda, but I like to have descriptions at times and based off of Law taking his hat off to eat, I feel like its a rule on the sub everyone follows.
> 
> Again, I have been trying to keep people updated via my tumblr account. Volleys-chan.tumblr.com. If you want to send me an ask or even just chat, I love to do such things and would enjoy it immensely.
> 
> Please tell me what you think as well in the comments below. They feed my muse and in return she comes back from her wandering to give us all more of this wonderful world!
> 
> Also, let me know who your favorite OC is thus far. I'd love feedback on them as well!
> 
> Till next chapter!
> 
> Vo-chan


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